CIVIL SOCIETY: MUTUAL ACCOUNTABILITY PROJECT Quarterly Progress Report October 1, 2019 – December 31, 2019 January 31, 2020 Cooperative Agreement Number AID-367-A-16-00007 Project Start and End Date: April 4, 2016 to April 3, 2021 Submitted to: Jack Adrien, Agreement Officer USAID Submitted by: Sajana Maharjan, Acting Chief of Party, Civil Society: Mutual Accountability Project FHI 360 GPO Box 8803, Gopal Bhawan Anamika Galli, Baluwatar, Kathmandu, Nepal Tel: 977.1.4437173 Email: [email protected] Civil Society: Mutual Accountability Project Quarterly Progress Report No. 11 Oct. 1, 2019 – Dec. 31, 2019 This document was produced for review by the United States Agency for International Development. It was prepared by FHI 360. The contents of this document do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government. Table of Contents 1. INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................................... 7 2. CONTEXT .................................................................................................................................................. 7 3. PROGRESS OVERVIEW ........................................................................................................................ 10 4. ACTIVITY PROGRESS ........................................................................................................................... 29 4.1 DEVELOPMENT AND SUBMISSION OF DELIVERABLES ...................................................................................... 29 4.2 PROGRESS ACHIEVED TOWARD PROJECT OBJECTIVES ..................................................................................... 30 5. CROSS-CUTTING INTERVENTIONS ................................................................................................... 90 5.1 GENDER EQUALITY AND SOCIAL INCLUSION ..................................................................................................... 90 5.2 YOUTH ENGAGEMENT ....................................................................................................................................... 92 5.3 USE OF INFORMATION, COMMUNICATION, AND MOBILE TECHNOLOGIES .......................................................... 93 6. COORDINATION AND COLLABORATION ........................................................................................ 94 7. MONITORING AND EVALUATION ..................................................................................................... 96 8. ACTIVITY PROGRESS SUMMARY ...................................................................................................... 99 9. SUCCESS STORIES ................................................................................................................................. 99 10. LESSONS LEARNED ............................................................................................................................... 99 11. CHALLENGES AND MITIGATION MEASURES ................................................................................ 99 12. PRIORITIES FOR QUARTER 2 (JANUARY 1 – MARCH 31, 2020) .................................................. 100 Civil Society: Mutual Accountability Project Quarterly Progress Report No. 11 Oct. 1, 2019 – Dec. 31, 2019 Abbreviations and Acronyms AIN Association of International Non-Government Organizations in Nepal AMO Advocacy and Monitoring/Oversight AOR Agreement Officer’s Representative ARI Advocacy Readiness Index CA Common Assembly CAG Content Advisory Group CAR Community Action Researcher CB Capacity Building CEC Chief Election Commissioner CIAA Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority CLFS Critical Listening Feedback Sessions CSC Community Score Card CS:MAP Civil Society: Mutual Accountability Project CS:MAP-HRS CS:MAP-Human Rights Strengthening CR Community Reporter CSC Community Score Card CSO Civil Society Organization DCC District Coordination Committee DEC Nepal Development Exchange Center Nepal DNF Dalit NGO Federation DRR Disaster Risk Reduction DQA Data Quality Assessment EAI Equal Access International ECN Election Commission of Nepal FMDC Media for Development and Social Change FNJ Federation of Nepali Journalists i GESI Gender Equality and Social Inclusion GGB Good Governance Barometer GON Government of Nepal GBV Gender-Based Violence HEAD Health, Education, Agriculture and Disaster Risk Reduction HOR House of Representatives HR Human Rights HRPLSC Human Rights Protection and Legal Service Center HRTMCC Human Rights Treaty Monitoring Coordination Center HURADEC Human Rights Awareness and Development Center ICCPR International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ICESCR International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights ICNL International Center for Not-for-Profit Law ICT Information and Communications Technology IHRC Information and Human Rights Center IHRICON Institute of Human Rights Communication Nepal IIP Institutional Improvement Plan IJ Investigative Journalism INGO International Non-Governmental Organization INSEC Informal Sector Service Center IPS Indo-Pacific Strategy IR Intermediate Result IRDC Indreni Rural Development Center IRDS Integrated Rural Development Society ISO Intermediary Service Organization IVR Interactive Voice Response LDAG Listening, Discussion, and Action Group ii LGBTIQA Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer or Asexual MC Martin Chautari MEL Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning MITRA Samaj Measures for Intervention Training Research and Action MOCIT Ministry of Communication and Information Technology MOFAGA Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration MOHA Ministry of Home Affairs MOU Memorandum of Understanding MOWCSC Ministry of Women Children and Senior Citizens MuAN Municipal Association of Nepal MELP Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Plan NCP Nepal Communist Party NEOC National Election Observation Committee NFN NGO Federation of Nepal NGO Non-Governmental Organization NHRAP National Human Rights Action Plan NHRC National Human Rights Commission NIC National Information Commission NFN NGO Federation of Nepal NNSWA Nepal National Social Welfare Association NPC National Planning Commission NRA National Reconstruction Authority OCA Organizational Capacity Assessment OGP Open Government Partnership OLGDS Open Local Government Digital System OPMCM Office of the Prime Minister and the Cabinet of Ministers PFMSP Public Financial Management Strengthening Project iii PEAR Participatory and Evidence-based Action Research PET Public Expenditure Tracking PIJ Public Interest Journalists PSA Public Service Announcement RTI Right to Information RWDC Rural Women Development Center SA Social Accountability SMC School Management Committee SMS Short Message Service SOCH Nepal Society for Humanism Nepal SSMK Saathi Sanga Manka Kura UDHR Universal Declaration of Human Rights UN United Nations UPR Universal Periodic Review USAID United States Agency for International Development VAG Violence Watch Group iv Executive Summary Civil Society: Mutual Accountability Project (CS:MAP) started implementation of its fifth-year work plan in a political context which remains largely unchanged in terms of the legal environment for civil society and media in Nepal. The arrest of a singer due to controversial lyrics and issuance of a notice ordering all public vehicles to remove targeted verses, popularly known as “truck sahitya,” raised concerns regarding freedom of expression. The resignation of Krishna Bahadur Mahara as Speaker of the House of Representatives (HOR) following attempted rape allegations and political party demands for a new speaker delayed the bill session of the Parliament for more than a month. This in turn slowed the pace of legal reforms. At the same time, the Government of Nepal (GON) has changed their approach to draft legislation in the second half of 2019, further limiting opportunities for civic involvement. Previously, early drafts of laws were shared with various stakeholders. The stakeholders would provide comments and critiques, share the drafts with others, and work with the Ministry or unit within the GON responsible for drafting the law to improve it. This approach enabled CS:MAP and its partners to review draft laws, compare them with international law and standards, and engage the GON in a constructive manner to improve draft legislation. But now a relevant Ministry initiates drafting a law internally and sends it to the Cabinet, which then sends to Parliament for enacting. This new approach significantly reduces the time for CS:MAP to provide technical assistance on draft legislation to partners, and it significantly reduces the time for public participation. Working against this backdrop, CS:MAP worked with its national advocacy partners and coalition leads to identify new areas and new ways to engage in the law-making process. CS:MAP, with support from the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL), continued to build the capacity of partners on international standards and best practices related to the freedoms of association and expression. In particular, CS:MAP continued to encourage partners to foster relationships with Ministry officials so that engagement can occur in the first stage of legislative drafting. CS:MAP, with ICNL technical assistance, is also planning a proactive approach with partners so that once a law reaches Parliament, an advocacy plan has already been devised and coalition leads and national advocacy partners