The Overall Objective of the UJYALO Program:
To promote peace through improved income, support and local capacities for peace among conflict affected communities in western Nepal.

Project Participants:

• Torture-affected individuals and communities
• Families who have lost a members due to armed conflict
• Communities greately affected by fear, mistrust and violence
• Internally displaced people and child victims of conflict
• Poor, dalit and socially exclued people

Project Objectives:

• Enhance opportunities for sustainable incomes in conflict affected areas
• Increased use of key psycho-social medical, legal and economic services by victims of conflict
• Strengthen community capacity for peace.

Background
The on-going conflict in Nepal has affected thousands of people through displacement, increased poverty and inequity. With families caught up in situations leading to migration and family break-down, children are most at risk. Disruption and closure of school and difficulties in meeting their daily food and economic needs are also factors which grossly affect children. Basically fear and mistrust have replaced social cohesion and this must be reversed.

Under this programme efforts are being made to promote peace through improved income, support and local capacities for peace among conflict affected communities in western Nepal. CARE Nepal and its strategic partners are contributing efforts with others agencies (Save the Children, International Development Enterprise, Winrock International and The Asia Foundation) towards the goal of promoting peace particularly in the area of overall community social harmony through social inclusion and increasing income generation opportunities through vocational skill enhancement and forestry base income generation. The Save the Children is the prime organisation for UJYALO program.

CARE Nepal's main Responsibility for UJYALO program
CARE Nepal has lead the design and implemention of activities to strengthen community capacity for peace. In 11 out of the 13 districts of UJYALO program district, CARE is working with different types of civil socieity organizations to implement programs that builds their capacity for conflict management and peace building through involvement in small scale infrastruture projects. These include roofing and furniture support to schools in the conflict zone, health facilities, small scale drinking water systems, culverts and foot trails for improved access. CARE has also integrated elements of conflict negotiation and management, peace building and community mediation into the community grouip orientations for rural infrastruture development and managment. Issues of social inclusion and equity related to the construction and use of the infrastruture is also critically addressed. CARE closely works with Save the Children, IDE, TAF, Winrock to link with the overall aim of UJYALO program.

Promoting Peace through Improved Income
The programme specifically focuses on issues related to economic hardship, psychosocial and other impacts of the conflict, with emphasises on social harmony within communities. With five collaborative partners, the project is addressing problems through the combined technical skills and knowledge of the partners. CARE is working towards the overall goal of promoting peace through improved income generation and supporting local capacities for peace among conflict affected communities in western Nepal. CARE Nepal is implementing the programme in nine districts, namely, Pyuthan, Dang, Banke, Bardiya, Surkhet, Kailali, Kanchanpur, Doti, and Dadheldura.

Focussing on two major intervention objectives, we have initiated the Participation for Social Harmony Project.

Enhanced Opportunities for Sustainable Incomes in Conflict Affected Areas
The project is addressing the lack of knowledge of income generating opportunities among farmers by providing technical leadership and know-how in income generating activities. There is also limited access to markets that needs to be addressed. The programme is also promoting right issues of marginalized households in common resources like forestry, and access and support to small-scale economic activities among the poorest household members of Community Forest Users Groups (CFUGs). New vocational skills among the marginalized Dalit and marginalized youth population are also being taught.

Strengthened Community Capacity for Peace
CARE Nepal is basically concentrating efforts on Enhanced Peace-Building and Dispute Resolution Skills in Communities through training and exposure and also providing opportunities for increased community participation in planning and management of key decentralized services and infrastructures.

By working with civil society organsations, we are building their capacity through involving them in small infrastructure projects aimed at increasing the availability and accessibility of basic services. By strengthening the capacity of communities for peace we anticipate communities will be able to live productive, peaceful lives. Allowing and encouraging people from different sectors of society to work and live together is also the aim of this project - Dalits, the marginalized, Janjatis and women have a lot to contribute and are encouraged to do so.

Major Activities
Enhancing opportunities for sustainable incomes in conflict affected areas through vocational training to youths (eg. plumbing, mason, sub-overseer, auxiliary health midwife etc.) is taking place, bearing in mind the real employment opportunities in the area. Income generating activities, mainly forestry based, as identified by forest user group members are also being carried out.

Strengthened community capacity for peace is also being sought through establishing small infrastructure constructions like school roofs, furniture, drinking water system, culvert and foot trail improvement etc. Training is being given to user groups in the form of peace building packages to further strengthen their peace building capacities.

Implementing Strategies

Working with strategic local partners who can deliver programmes in their own areas and develop and use local human resources - this will help to address questions of inclusion and equity in every aspect of the development process.

Complementing each partners' programme to achieve the overall project goal - it is vital each collaborative partners' projects are complementary to others; helping to achieve the overall goal of promoting peace through improved income, support and increased local capacities for peace.

Complementing other CARE programmes such as the ASHA project, which is contributing to poverty reduction in the remote areas of the country, particularly areas badly effected by the conflict, and water and sanitation projects.

Develop and use local human resources - trainings and orientations are building up the skills and capacities of the community.

Involve locals - through the participation of local groups and providing opportunities for the jobs.

Empower users community members to work as peace workers/practitioners in their community.

Public Auditing system and closed monitoring by communities themselves to ensure quality and transparency on the programme.

"Do no harm" policy adopted by CARE.

Training packages and documents have been developed in order to help implement this programme, such as a monitoring and evaluation training manual; community peace building training manual; public audit training manual; community level training manual on pre-construction management of drinking water systems and social inclusion; community level training manual on small-infrastructure management and social inclusion training; public auditing book for infrastructure; public auditing book for training and income generation activities; income generation guideline for forestry user groups as well as a "Do No Harm" training manual and a "Right Base" training manual.

Expected Outcomes
It is expected that 750 households will establish income-generating opportunities while 150 youths will obtain vocational skills in order to be able to generate income for their households. More income generating schemes will take place in the order of 150 Community Forestry User Groups supporting income generation programmes to marginalized households within their user household group, and 295 small infrastructure programmes implemented by local user groups comprising of women and Dalits members. Peace initiatives will be implemented by 125 local user groups which will also include the inclusion of women and Dalits.