KATHMANDU, Dec 8: Majority of international non-governmental organizations and non-governmental organizations (I/NGOs) involved in the reconstruction and rehabilitation work do not submit their monthly progress report to the National Reconstruction Authority (NRA), according to the authority.
Finding negligence on the part of the I/NGOs, the NRA has taken the issue seriously and has asked their representatives to submit their monthly reports to the NRA on a regular basis from now onward.
As many as 145 I/NGOs are involved in the reconstruction and rehabilitation activities in the earthquake-hit districts for the past several months. "But majority of them have not been submitting their monthly progress reports to us and this is serious. So, we have asked the representatives of the I/NGOs to strictly stick to the NRA guidelines and submit their progress reports on a monthly basis." said NRA's Deputy Spokesperson Bhishma Kumar Bhusal, who also oversees I/NGOs.
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During a meeting of a development aid coordination and facilitation committee on Wednesday, NRA officials asked representatives of the NGO Federation and the Association of International NGOs to ask all the 145 I/NGOs to submit their progress reports immediately.
"We want to ensure transparency in the activities of the I/NGOs. So, on Thursday, we are going to make telephone calls to the I/NGOs who are yet to submit their progress reports to the NRA and ask them to submit the reports as soon as possible," Bhusal said.
He said that the NRA will not tolerate such negligence from I/NGOs from now onward. The progress report is the basis for monitoring the activities of the I/NGOs and for ensuring that they complete the projects on time.
The directives issued by the NRA for NGOs and INGOs include an annex according to which the NGOs and INGOs have to declare all particulars of their projects and programs, including project costs and timeframe for project execution. They also have to start work within a week of signing the agreement with the government agencies concerned and submit their progress reports to the NRA every month and every quarter. Any breach of the agreement will automatically terminate the agreement. All projects should be handed over to the government within a set period.
Daya Sagar Shrestha, executive director of NGO Federation who was also present at the meeting, admitted that the I/NGOs were negligent in not submitting their monthly progress reports. "The NRA has raised the issue seriously. We will immediately ask all the NGOs to submit their reports on a regular basis as it will help to ensure transparency," he added.
