WELCOME ACCURO FIDUCIARY
TO YOUR YEAR 3 - Q3 PROJECT REPORT

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OVERVIEW

This quarter was the penultimate quarter of the first 3 year cycle of our Girls Empowerment Programme in Nawapur, Nepal. The period has seen an opening up of some schools and reduced Covid-19 restrictions. The staff have been able to visit the girls households more frequently and the girls themselves have been taking part in local focus groups and some national events, as well as staying very much involved with the international community online.

Objectives:

  • To eliminate all forms of violence and discrimination against girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation.

  • To end all harmful practices towards girls (child, early and forced marriage, taboos on regular menstruation).

  • To empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion.

  • To ensure equal opportunity to girls/adolescent laws, policies and practices.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE QUARTER

Provincial Consultation on Girls' Issues with Policy Makers

A provincial consultation program was conducted in Pokhara, Gandaki Province, with the policymakers to discuss the status of girls' rights in the province and also to look for a way forward. The program was conducted in joint collaboration with INSEC, National Coalition for Girls Rights, and Social Development Ministry of Gandaki Province.

The chief guest of the program was Honorable Netranath Adhikari, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Gandaki Province Assembly. There were a total of 55 participants, which included Provincial Assembly members, Government officials, representatives from the Ministry of Women, Children, and Senior Citizens (MoWCSC), Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), CSO Network representatives, and various other stakeholders.

This was followed by a discussion session where various guests shared case stories, their efforts to protect and promote girls' rights, existing disparity, challenges, and possible measures that can be taken to take larger leaps towards gender equality.

16 Days Of Activism

16 days of activism against Gender-Based Violence is celebrated every year from 25th November to 10th December.

We, our partners and the girls played a large part in gathering local support and taking part in multiple events:

A cycle rally that started on 25th November on the occasion of International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, and the first day of 16 days of activism, ended on 10th December 2020. The participants of the rally included adolescents and members of the organising team.

The rally also included self-defence training by certified trainers and a discussion about practices that the participants have adopted and initiatives that they can take to tackle rape, as well as gender based harmful practices.

A Virtual activism campaign As the celebration of the 16 days of activism on a larger scale was not possible due to COVID-19, an online campaign was introduced instead. During the campaign, video messages from youth icons and youth celebrities, highlighting their commitment to putting a stop to Gender-Based Violence (GBV) was disseminated through social media. Along with that, Instagram and Facebook filters and badges were launched; using which, people could express their solidarity in the campaign.

A poetry competition for youth was also conducted where participants sent their poems based on the theme "Fighting GBV".

Acknowledging Tik-Tok as a platform where a large number of youth are engaged, a Tik-Tok competition with the same theme was conducted. The winners of the competitions were announced after the completion of the campaign.

Misuse of children in entertainment materials and gender equality. The National Child Rights Council in collaboration with Jcycn, National Coalition For Girls Rights, and Kanallan organised an interactive program on the involvement of children in music videos and entertainment sectors and gender equality.

In total there were 26 participants in the program including the representative of various concerned bodies and organisations including the Press Council, Film association, and various networks. The program ended with a positive commitment of the governing bodies to advocate, introduce laws, and implement them regarding the issues raised about the involvement of children in music video and entertainment sectors.

DECEMBER PEERS’ MEETING

In the monthly meeting of peer educators, the peer educators met with Mr. Rajesh Sharma, a journalist. They shared their experiences of working as a peer educator, the changes that they had seen in themselves, and also the changes that they had seen in those around them during the years they have been a peer educator. The meeting was facilitated by Peer Educators Rejina Gharti Magar and Ritika Pokharel.

The peer educators shared the stories of how they had acted as agents of change and seen the shift in awareness of their family, fellow peers, schools, and even the community. The peer educators' stories have been captured by Mr. Sharma, who is working on a series of newspaper articles that depict the peers' stories and highlight the important issues of girls. An article has already been published in the national daily; Shilapatra, which is a leading online news portal in Nepal, referencing the peer educators' stories about normalising menstruation.