Evaluation of Child and Youth Participation in Peacebuilding NEPAL Release Date: June 2015 Authors: Primary author Bibhuti Bista, supporting author Claire O’Kane Publisher: Global Partnership for Children and Youth in Peacebuilding Contact: www.GPCYP.com, [email protected] Evaluation of Child and Youth Participation in Peacebuilding – Nepal Acknowledgements The 3M evaluation has supported partnerships and participatory processes at every level from local to global. We would like to appreciate the commitment and efforts of significant numbers of individuals and agencies who have been part of this journey to better understand, evaluate, and increase support for child and youth peacebuilding. First and foremost we appreciate the commitment, motivation and insights of child and youth peacebuilders and adult supporters who dedicated their time and energy as Local Evaluation Team members. The rich findings, analysis and evidence base shared in this report are the results of hard work and dedication of LET members. Immense thanks to Nepal LET members: Aaitaram, Ajay, Akwar, Amrendra, Anup, Bhawana, Deepak, Durga, Ganesh, Jamuna, Jay, Kamni, Karna, Keshari, Krishna, Laxmi, Mahendra, Akhtar, Meena, Mintu, Narayan, Nirmala, Omprakash, Pratima, Puja, Sabita, Santosh, Saru, Shova, Sirjana, Suhani, Sunil, Surendra, Yogmaya, Tej, Bisna, Bimala and Indu. Particular thanks to LET Coordinators who shared information, coordinated planning, transcribed findings, and followed up to gather additional sources of evidence. Thanks and appreciation to Deepak Sharma, Hem Raj Joshi, Satyendra Kumar Yadav and Sher Bahadur Thapa. We also extend our thanks and gratitude to colleagues in the youth organizations (JCYCN, Nawalparasi; YNPD-Mahottari) and NGO partners (Bikas Ka Lagi Pailaharu Nepal, Rolpa; Community Development Center, Doti) who provided important support to the LETs. Thanks to each individual child, youth and adult who took time to participate in a Focus Group Discussion, Draw and Write or other data collection activity sharing your experiences, views and suggestions. We also appreciate the time and advice provided by members of the District Advisory Committees. Sincere thanks to all the organizations and initiatives involved in the evaluation. This evaluation would not have been possible without the immense support and collaboration of agencies who came together to form the Country Partnership Steering Teams, namely Alliance for Peace (AfP) Nepal, Jagriti Child and Youth Concern Nepal (JCYCN), Save the Children, Search for Common Ground (SFCG), World Vision International in Nepal, and Youth Network for Peace and Development (YNPD) Mahottari. Special appreciation to key agency representatives who steered and guided the evaluation process in Nepal, namely: Prateek Adhikari, Tilottam Paudel, Dev Ale, Niresh Chapagain, Archana Rai, and Suresh Thakur. We appreciate Rajendra Mulmi, Yubakar Raj Rajkarnikar, Shiva Dhungana, and Niresh Chapagain from SFCG Nepal for taking the leadership to manage and provide technical support for the 3M process in Nepal. Thanks to Balika Chaudhari and Swarnim Lama who provided support during the National Capacity Building Workshop and the Data Analysis Workshop. Similarly, our sincere thanks to Indra Khati and Deepa Shrestha, from SFCG’s finance department. Acknowledgements 3 We also appreciate the time and insights provided by the Honorable Minister Purushottam Paudel, Silla Ristimaki, Krishna Subedi, Deepak Bashyal, Sanjog Thakuri, and Abhilasa Acharya. In addition, we acknowledge the useful edits by Wayne Redpath and the design of the report by Amund Lie Nitter. Sincerest thanks and appreciation to Bibhuti Bista for his commitment, sensitivity, and unending hard work as Country Evaluator. This evaluation would not have succeeded without his leadership, coordination, mentoring, analysis, and reporting. We also extend our gratitude to Prativa Rai, the Partnership Coordinator for her continuous support, coordination and positive encouragement. We recognize and appreciate the role that the two Global Evaluators Claire O’Kane and Dr. Michael McGill have played in providing the architecture and mentoring for the participatory methodology ensuring a commitment to participatory, ethical practice with and by children, youth and adults as evaluators; while also focusing on systematic data collection, analysis and reporting. Thanks to Claire for mentoring and supporting the evaluation process in Nepal. Last, but not least we appreciate the significant guidance, leadership, and commitment of the Global Partnership Steering Team members who had the vision and the will to put this evaluation into practice. Multiple thanks to Andra Tanase (PATRIR), Annette Giertsen (Save the Children Norway), Saji Prelis (Search for Common Ground), Solvi Karlsson and Matilda Flemming (UNOY Peacebuilders), and Dilshan Annaraj (World Vision International). We also extend our thanks to Matthew Scott, World Vision international, and we give special appreciation to Annette Giertsen for coordinating the 3M evaluation. 4 Evaluation of Child and Youth Participation in Peacebuilding – Nepal Table of contents Acknowledgements 3 Abbreviations 8 Executive Summary 9 Impact of Child and Youth Participation in Peacebuilding 10 Factors influencingCYP impact 12 Quality of Child and Youth Participation in Peacebuilding 13 PART ONE: Introduction and methodology 16 Part One Roadmap 16 Brief Background to Child and Youth Peacebuilding 17 3M Evaluation Objectives and Methodology 22 Implementation Structure and Evaluation Methodology Development 22 Evaluation Limitations 23 Evaluation Terms and Participants Defined 24 Nepal Partnership for Children and Youth in Peacebuilding: 25 Overview of 3M Evaluation Tools 29 Applying 3M Evaluation Tools in Nepal 32 Children, Youth and Adult Engagement in the Documentation and Analysis Process 35 Lessons Learned by Involving Children and Youth in the Participatory Evaluation Process: 37 Table of Contents 5 PART TWO: Findings 41 Overview of CYP initiatives evaluated 41 Impact of Child and Youth Participation in Peacebuilding 45 Theme One: Aware and Active Citizens for Peace 47 Theme Two: Increased Peaceful Co-habitation and Reduced Discrimination 51 Theme Three: Reduced Violence 56 Factors InfluencingCYP Impact 63 Quality of Child and Youth Participation in Peacebuilding 77 Overarching Findings Concerning the Quality and Impact of Child and Youth Participation in Peacebuilding 86 PART THREE: Recommen dations and conclusions 91 Recommendations 91 Conclusions 94 6 Evaluation of Child and Youth Participation in Peacebuilding – Nepal APPENDIX 1 Case Studies 96 Case Study I: Collaborative Participation of Children from Child Clubs in Developing Child Friendly Local Governance 96 Case Study II Collaborative Participation by Youth to Address Un- touchability free VDC 105 Case Study III: Youth Initiative to Establish an Alcohol free VDC 111 Case Study IV:Youth Led Initiative to Organise a Peace Festival 117 APPENDIX 2 Overview of CYP Initiatives Evaluated by LETs 124 APPENDIX 3 CYP Initiatives that used Pots and Stones to Evaluate the Quality of Child and Youth Participation in Peacebuilding 133 References 137 Table of Contents  7 Abbreviations 3M Evaluation Multi-Agency ,Multi-Country ,Multi-Donor Evaluation AYON Association of Youth Organizations Nepal CACs Citizen Awareness Centers CDC Community Development Center CFLG Child Friendly Local Governance CLS Civic Leadership School CPN-M Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist CSOs Civil Society Organizations CWIN Child Workers in Nepal CYP Child and Youth Peacebuilding CYPP Child and Youth Participation in Peacebuilding CZOP Children as Zones of Peace CZOPP Children as Zones of Peace and Protection DAO District Administration Office DCWB District Child Welfare Board DDC District Development Committee FGDs Focus Group Discussions GBV Gender Based Violence HRH His Royal Highness IANYD Inter-Agency Network and Youth Development INGOs International Non Governmental Organizations JCYCN Jagriti Child and Youth Concern Nepal LET Local Evaluation Team LETs Local Evaluation Teams LGCPD Local Governance and Community Development Plans LPC Local Peace Committee MoE Ministry of Education MoYS Ministry of Youth and Sports NGOs Non Governmental Organizations ODF Open Defecation Free PATRIR Peace Action Training and Research Institute of Romania PBSO Peacebuilding Support Office RPP Reflecting on Peace Practice SFCG Search for Common Ground SZOP Schools as Zones of Peace ToC Theory of Change UNICEF United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund UNOY United Network of Young Peacebuilders VDC Village Development Committee WCFs Ward Citizen Forums WCO Women and Children Office YE Youth Engage YNPD Mahottari Youth Network for Peace and Development Mahottari YPDCs Youth Peace Dialogue Centers 8 Evaluation of Child and Youth Participation in Peacebuilding – Nepal Executive Summary In Nepal, children and youth constitute the majority of the population where 62.8% are under the age of 29 (Government of Nepal Central Bureau of Statistics, November 2012). Children and youth in Nepal are living in a post- conflict situation and are affected by different forms of conflict and violence. For approximately a decade, from 1996 – April 2006, Nepal witnessed a ’People’s War,’ launched by the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), CPN-M. The decade long armed conflict adversely affected children’s and youth education, livelihoods, family based care, survival, protection and well- being (Save the Children, Norway, 2008; Mulmi,