Governance

Overview
Community Organizations

We build the capacity of 71 community organizations; training hundreds of villagers from 7 blocks in Koraput on their rights, communication skills, government schemes, and livelihood issues.

Capacity Building

We train and support community organizations to strengthen existing Panchayat Raj Institutions and take advantage of National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) and the Right to Information Act. We give them advocacy and communication skills so they can present critical issues to the block and district levels. Out of our combined efforts, 1,112 families have accessed employment under NREGA. In addition, participation of villagers in their self-governing system has dramatically increased, particularly with women.

Involving Women

We facilitate the inclusion of women in village self-governing bodies and encourage them to hold their own meetings to discuss their issues. In each of our target panchayats, women's organization meetings have been held, where we work to help them define their role in the Panchayat Raj system and strengthen their role as decision-makers regarding health and education issues.

Mobilizing Government Funds

We build the capacity of community organizations to access funds designated for development projects from the government. Our involvement has enabled village to construct roads, guard walls, drains for irrigation and farm ponds. These activities have benefited villages tremendously. The irrigation drains alone have doubled the crop of grain and vegetables.

Land and Forest Rights

We facilitate the formation of forest rights committees and train them on the key issues and how to advocate for their rights. So far, with our support, over 600 families have applied for land and forest rights under the Forest Rights Act. In addition, we've helped villages develop sound plans for sustainable agriculture, land management, forest regeneration, and water harvesting.