Community Governance in Infrastructure Services (multi country project supported by European Commission in collaboration with Practical Action)

Views from the Frontline 2019

The Community Governance in Infrastructure Services” project is co-funded by European Commission and Practical Action and being implemented by local partners in three South Asian countries i.e. India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka commenced during 2009. OSVSWA is one of the partner and implementing the project in Nayagarh District of Odisha state in India. Major focus of this project has been lying on involving state and non-state actors (including poor community people, civil society organizations, intellectuals, institutions etc.) for ensuring adoption of successful participatory approaches in the participatory planning, decision making, implementation and sustainability of community infrastructures.

The project so far has achieved enormous success with cooperation from the community, local institutions, PRI and local, district and state government departments/ authorities.

The project has managed to penetrate the concept and importance of peoples’ (women, vulnerable group, disadvantaged and other backwards) participation at different steps of community development activities, which would ultimately bring a sustainable community development. During the last five years of efforts, community is mobilized, institutions are formalized, infrastructures created i.e. Diversion Weirs, water lifting points, rural electrification with alternate energy, water supply and sanitation etc. with full involvement/management of community. Besides this, community issues were highlighted through print & electronic medias, media workshops and discussed at district, state level through public debates.

At national level, the appropriate approach of the project is disseminated through consultations at different states to get recommendation for adoption of community governance mechanism at SAARC level. Finally an endorsement document on participatory governance submitted to SAARC Secretariat.

Action at the Front Line (AFL)
Action at the Frontline is a program of work which extends Views from the Frontline by taking the surveys and consultations as a basis for promoting cycles of action, reflection and learning at community level on disaster risk reduction. It also builds on the learning which was captured in the 57 Action at the Frontline case studies produced in 2011 and which will be made accessible with a detailed thematic access as part of the program. OSVSWA is implementing the study in Kalasakhaman Gram Panchayat of Daspalla Block (a tribal dominated block of Nayagarh disitct) and Sisua Gram Panchayat of Puri district. The study is funded by the GNDR.

Youth in Action
1. EU Aid Volunteer Project (European Volunteers in Humaniritarin Aid Corps) aims at developing an innovative frame of expression of solidarity for Europeans through their engagement as humanitarian volunteer on projects aiming at strengthening local communities in third countries in terms of disaster risk reduction and post-crisis recovery. The project was supported by European Commission in collaboration with ADICE, France.

2. GREEN YOUTH CITIZENS project funded by ‘Youth in Action’ of the European Commission. The main aim of the project ‘Green Youth Citizens’ is to raise awareness about environmental problems and how they confine us in the exercise of as active citizenship. This multy-country project is being implemented in Romania, Spain, Turkey, Nepal, Bangladesh and India. OSVSWA is implementing the project in India.

3.Sport for Tolerance project (Action 2) European Volunteers Service supported by European Commission with partners from Brazil, Romania, Turkey, France and India. The main purpose of the project is to aware the young people about the benefit of sport, as way for healthy life style. The project aims to highlight the importance of associating the sport with spending the free time and encourage the active participation of young people in society. OSVSWA is the partner from India and sending 2 volunteers to Romania for the project.

4.OSVSWA is hosting the Secretariat for South Asian Youth Climate Coalition (SAYCC) which was founded in 2011 with member partners from China, Nepal, Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh. SAYCC has partnered in organizing workshops / campaigns on youth in environment management and climate change.

Green School Project
OSVSWA is currently implementing Green School project in Takera School (a tribal residential school) with support and collaboration from Practical Action (an UK based charity). Project aim is to use food waste (garbage) to generate biogas for cooking, which lead to reduce firewood consumption, smoke free kitchen as a healthier environment and decrease financial burden from cooking fuel by the school administration. Along with the bio-gas unit, solar powered water supply, kitchen gardening (using the slurry from the bio-gas unit), solar lights to classrooms and hostel rooms, training and orientation on bio-gas, solar energy and climate change to the residents, appointing Green Minister (one green minister has been chosen from the school student) etc for creating a green movement among the children.

Study on Urban Sanitation Landscape in Orissa
About 48% of urban households in the state do not have access to toilet. The level of access to sanitation is even lower in the slums. The impact of unsafe sanitation conditions and behavior is particularly severe on the urban poor, women and children. Besides poverty, lack of tenure, housing and environmental conditions in slum constrains the urban poor households from gaining access to safe sanitation. There are nine ULBs in Odisha with a population over 100,000 viz. Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Puri, Sambalpur, Balasore, Berhampur, Baripada, Rourkela and Bhadrak. Housing and Urban Development Department (H&UDD) of the Govt. of Odisha has prepared an action plan for providing sanitation coverage in all urban areas of the state and making the cities open defecation free by 2020.

Objectives:
Develop a study on urban landscape for Odisha in finding gaps and bottlenecks in the program plans and implementation

Bring out relevant and suitable programmatic and technological alternatives.
The study has been supported by Practical Action (an UK based charity)

ICT for Development
IRMA-India (ICT Division of OSVSWA) has established 2 TecdhnoCottages (Digityal Unify Lab) at Badhinuapalli of Khallikote Block in Ganjam district and Daspalla in Nayagarh District with support from Connected Ventures, USA and STMicroelectronics Foundation, Geneva. These centers are the sources of knowledge, skills, information for social and economic empowerment of rural families including women towards reaching the unreached and voicing the voiceless. The centers are in operation since 2009 at both the locations.