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Nepal: Udaan – Equitable access to basic education for poor and vulnerable adolescent girls in Nepal – NPL968

Nepal: Udaan – Equitable access to basic education for poor and vulnerable adolescent girls in Nepal – NPL968

In Nepal the majority of adolescents and young people live in rural areas (82%) with half of them in underdeveloped and underserved areas. A quarter of Nepali citizens live on less than 1$ a day. Dalits, Muslims and indigenous communities are subjected to systematic discrimination and depend on low-income labour works that hardly meet their basic needs. Girls from these communities face an additional layer of discrimination due to the gender inequality embedded in social norms and perpetuated through policy and service delivery, which limits their access to education and is manifested in:

Higher illiteracy rates (40%, compared to 21% for men) and higher school drop-out rate among girls (15.2% in Kapilvastu district).
Unequal work opportunities and wage inequality (e.g. boys in the age group 15-19 in the target area earn almost four times what girls earn).
Persistence of harmful traditional practices such as physical exclusion during menstruation, controls over mobility, early marriage (23.2% girls in the age group 15-19 are married), early pregnancy and practice of dowry.
Increased and new forms of violence.
Overload of housework and domestic responsibilities.

Overall Objective

Equitable access to basic education for marginalized adolescent girls in Nepal for better life opportunities.

Specific Objective

275 marginalized out-of-school adolescent girls from province 5 have access to education and are empowered.

Expected Results

ER1: Poor and marginalized girls are capacitated to continue education in formal schools via the Udaan centers

ER 2: Families and local communities have an increased understanding on the need of equitable access to education for girls.

ER 3: Local education policies are upgraded including elements from the Udaan concept to facilitate access to education and retention of poor and marginalized out-of-school girls.

Main Activities

Establishment of 6 Udaan centers
Capacity building of teachers on Udaan pedagogy and approach
Training of adolescent girls using the Udaan curriculum and follow up their enrolment and continuity in formal schools
Development of girls leadership using extracurricular activities and peer support like the Udaan friends initiative
Establishment of parents groups
Capacity building to parents on Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLA), financial literacy, parenting and gender transformative sessions
Engagement with community groups and participation in reflection & awareness raising sessions on girls education
Design and implementation of social campaigns led by the Udaan girls
Identification of gaps and issues related to education and affecting the enrolment and retention of vulnerable girls in schools using the CSC system through the participation of schools and other community stakeholders
Assistance to the municipal authorities on the formulation or update of equitable municipal education policies and action plans
Guidance and capacitation for education’s stakeholders on formulated/updated education policies
Support to the operation of the schools child clubs
Assistance to School Management Committees for effective implementation of the grievance handling mechanism