DevelopmentMARCH 2021 Advocate NEPAL COVID RECOVERY 2 / Development Advocate Nepal ADVISORS Ayshanie Medagangoda-Labé, UNDP Resident Representative Bernardo Cocco, UNDP Deputy Country Director (Programme) EDITORS Binda Magar Dharma Swarnakar Kalpana Sarkar Kamal Raj Sigdel Pragyajan Yalambar Rai Richa Ranjitkar Tek Tamata Vijaya Singh © UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME (UNDP) UN HOUSE, PULCHOWK, LALITPUR G.P.O. BOX 107, KATHMANDU, NEPAL TEL: (977-1) 5523200 FAX: (977-1) 5523991, 5523986 www.np.undp.org Development Advocate Nepal / 3 4 / Development Advocate Nepal PHOTO CREDITS: LAXMI PD NGAKHUSI, PRAKASH CHANDRA TIMILSENA, PURNIMA SHRESTHA, ABHUSHAN GAUTAM, KAMAL RAJ SIGDEL, BINITA KARKI, SATISH PANDEY. CONTENTS 06 16 34 44 GOVERNANCE GREEN RECOVERY SOCIAL PROTECTION DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION The measures taken to A climate cure for the Going local and A digital transformation control the pandemic COVID crisis sustainable led by COVID-19 were good but By Simon Lucas, a Team By Saurav Dhakal 34 By Neelesh Man Singh inadequate Leader for Resilience Pradhan, Chief Executive By Bimala Rai Paudyal, and Inclusion Team A Smart City is only Officer of Nepal Clearing Member of the National of the UK Department possible with smart House Ltd. The views Assembly 06 for International citizens, smart expressed here are Development (DFID). 16 governance, smart personal. 44 A country can do economy, and smart anything it wants to Biodiversity conservation infrastructure The government aims to when it is economically and the impacts of Interview with Mr. Dilip turn all public services prosperous nature-based tourism Pratap Khand, mayor tech-friendly to help An interview with Krishna in the Annapurna of Waling Municipality, citizens Prasad Oli, Member Conservation Area Syangja 37 An interview with of National Planning By Dr. Siddhartha B. Asgar Ali, Information Commission (NPC) 11 Bajracharya, executive Towards a more technology consultant director of the National sustainable and resilient to the Prime Minister of Information Matters Trust for Nature society: COVID-19 should Nepal 49 By Yashoda Timilsina, a Conservation and Dr. serve as an alarm and former commissioner of Dhanjaya Regmi , chief herald our transition to a Opportunity Created by the National Information executive officer of the sustainable society that Covid-19 Information is Commission 14 Nepal Tourism Board. 20 takes climate action into power: Improving access account to critical information to A green post-pandemic By Shail Shrestha, CEO help improve lives recovery and resilience Digo Bikas Institute 38 By Aradhana Gurung, plan for Nepal 26 Country Manager for Building bridges, surviv- Viamo in Nepal, Emma Post-COVID Tourism ing the pandemic and Leering, Director of Recovery: Can nature- emerging stronger 40 Programs for Viamo in based tourism power Nepal and Shruti Jha, Nepal’s green recovery? Inclusive eLearning: Product Manager for Dr. Dhananjay Regmi Leaving no one behind Viamo in Nepal. 52 & Dr. Siddhartha By Sagar Prasai, Director, B. Bajracharya 30 Diverse Patterns 42 6 / Development Advocate Nepal GOVERNANCE THE MEASURES TAKEN TO CONTROL THE PANDEMIC WERE GOOD BUT INADEQUATE Bimala Rai Paudyal, a member of the National Assembly, speaks about the Nepal government’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic and its shortcomings in her own words. Development Advocate Nepal / 7 The biggest challenge to the Covid-19 Our health system is itself also a was the biggest opportunity for all of pandemic that I saw was a lack of challenge. This pandemic exposed us, but we failed to cash in. Migrant preparedness, especially for the how vulnerable our health system workers have now started returning most pervasive pandemic we have is. Forget basic health protocols to their labour destinations. ever faced. We dealt with a similar like quarantine facilities and challenge during 2015’s devastating isolation centres, there was not We need a clear delineation of earthquakes. This pandemic wasn’t even adequate space to admit the jurisdiction of the three levels predicted but we should have started patients to the hospital. There of government. For example, the to prepare after the emergence of the virus in China. But, we were lost on that was no preparedness in handling federal government should have set front. non-Covid-19 patients, particularly a broader policy framework, such those suffering from pressure, as isolation and quarantine centres, We are dealing with the pandemic sugar, cancer, and other health human resource ratio, finances and based on an outdated law. As the complications. Several pregnant supplies, and dealing with non- country has already been transformed women died on their way to the Covid-19 complications. All these into a federal set up, there should hospital or at home due to a lack of acts should’ve then been executed have been a new law with a clear timely treatment. We lack sufficient by the local governments with the mandate, especially for coordination health infrastructures and human provincial government coordinating. among intergovernmental agencies, resources. During the Covid-19 crisis, we health mechanisms, provisions of saw that some local governments relief and rescue for the needy, and The government should also have ways to strengthen financial and human resources. An integrated legal defined a broader framework before framework is still necessary to tackle enforcing a lockdown. We didn’t the pandemic effectively. allot enough time for workers living in big cities like Kathmandu to go Some countries drafted new laws home. That’s why we witnessed as soon as Covid-19 cases emerged heartbreaking stories of people in their countries. The move cleared struggling to reach their homes. legal hurdles, defined the roles and Arrangements should have been responsibilities of state bodies, and put in place to ferry people to their eased the procurement process. But respective destinations before we faced great difficulties in large- enforcing the lockdown. scale medical procurement and in maintaining transparency owing to Nevertheless, thousands of migrant the lack of a pandemic law. workers from India and the Gulf countries managed to return As of now, the government is home with skills and a little bit of working under a law promulgated seed money. They have returned some 57 years ago. with a desire to stay home. If we had tracked all returning migrant Second, we failed to formulate a workers, analysed their skills and broad framework on how to tackle needs, and provided them with job Covid-19 in time. Clear roles and opportunities, we could’ve easily responsibilities for all three tiers replaced the 800,000 Indian and of governments would’ve helped Bangladeshi people working in in responding to the crisis in a Nepal. They could’ve been mobilized coordinated manner. to complete our megaprojects and resume agricultural farming. That 8 / Development Advocate Nepal were very innovative in handling the pandemic, although there were challenges related to capacity building. The way the local leadership, especially women deputy mayors, dealt with migrant workers arriving through the porous border with India deserves appreciation. The relevance of local government was proved during this pandemic. Local governments can work effectively when they believe that the federal and provincial governments will support them whenever problems arise. Some local governments introduced the concept of agricultural ambulance to assist farmers in selling their products during the lockdown. Other local governments ensured reproductive services for people at their doorsteps. Provinces actually should have applied such good practices in other local governments as well. Sadly, we couldn’t empower local governments as necessary. There’s always a problem in maintaining a delicate balance between the authority and capacity of local governments. In other words, some local governments have the authority but lack capacity whereas others have done little despite having enough working capacity. has not been functioning effectively. and execute their suggestions. A crisis response team should Its activities are limited to organizing There’s the same problem at the have been formed at the federal meetings and providing updates. local government level. Elected and provincial governments so It tried to ease the procurement mayors don’t respect public health that problems at the local level process, but failed. experts. So, there’s a mismatch could be resolved immediately. between authority and expertise. The government formed the CCMC Mere bureaucratic decisions can’t Vulnerable communities, namely (Coronavirus Crisis Management contain a pandemic. Therefore, the women, children, people with Committee) to bridge the gap but it government should listen to experts disabilities, and marginalised Development Advocate Nepal / 9 Despite all these shortcomings, the Cases of suicide also surged. These federal government announced a problems were not foreseen in relief package for vulnerable groups the initial days. Later, we started a few weeks after announcing the counseling and relief packages lockdown. Local governments were were announced, but we couldn’t do mandated to provide relief. This was better because of bureaucratic red actually a good step, although there tape. were some legal complications in receiving relief. But locals did not Having said that, the measures we trust the government. They went to took in response to the Covid-19 Khula Manch or temple premises to crisis were good but inadequate.