Grassroots and Policy Linkage on WTO Issues (GRAPOL)
Background
GRAPOL seeks to create a linkage between grassroots and policy level, particularly for enabling stakeholders at both levels to take proactive measures to minimise the risks and reap the benefits from Nepal's membership to the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The goal of the project is to ensure that stakeholders at the grassroots level raise their voices on WTO issues and policymakers and planners take into consideration their concerns while formulating policy documents and legislation. Awareness Raising, Capacity Building, Networking and Media and Policy Advocacy are the major focus areas of the project.
GRAPOL was launched in December 2005 and will be completed in November 2008. The project will be implemented in Nepal.
Partners
The project is supported by MS Nepal, Danish Association for International Cooperation, Kathmandu. For the initial launch of the project, eight MS partners in the Western Development Region of Nepal have been selected.
The partners are two community radios - Community Radio Madanpokhara (CRM), Palpa and Radio Lumbini (RL), Rupandehi; one women organisation - Women Welfare Association (WWA), Palpa; two community based organisations (CBOs) - Gramin Swabalamban Samajik Kendra (GSSK), Kapilvastu and Jana Adarsha Social Centre (JASC), Kapilvastu; and three resource non-governmental organisations (NGOs) - Kalika Self-reliant Social Centre (KSSC), Kapilvastu and Social Resource Development Centre Nepal (SRDCN), Palpa and Siddhartha Social Development Centre (SSDC), Kapilvastu.
Objectives
During the three-year project period, SAWTEE will build the capacity of the project partners and enable them to raise awareness on WTO and livelihood issues at the community level. The project has the following specific objectives:
- Year One: Building awareness of grassroots level government bodies, civil society organisations (CSOs), including CBOs, community media persons and resource persons on trade issues.reating awareness amongst stakeholders through various publications.
- Year Two: Enhancing awareness of grassroots level government bodies, CSOs, CBOs, community media persons and resource persons on specific trade issues.
- Year Three: Enabling grassroots level CSOs, CBOs, community media persons and resource persons to oraganise campaigns on trade related issues so that policy and law makers make efforts to address their concerns.
Activities Activities under the project include: Development of Training Manual; Training Programme for Social Activists from CBOs and Community Radio Organisations; Publications of Newsletters and Leaflets; Organisation of Workshops and Forums at the Regional Level; and Internship Programmes for Local Journalists and Community Leaders.
