Surfing in the dark: Nepal's need for economic reforms

[Myself, Daphne Koller and Professor Duneier]

More than a year has passed since I visited Princeton University in October 2012. I was there to participate in a panel discussion organized by the university. I was among the 40,000 students around the world who had been taking the online 'Sociology' course on Coursera and I had been chosen to visit the university and participate in the panel discussion because of my active participation in classes. I still vividly remember the excitement amidst the nervousness that had engulfed me at being on the stage, in-front of faculty members and students of the university presenting about how internet and online courses were helping students from developing countries like me. It was the moment I realized Thomas L. Friedman is indeed right when he says the world is getting flatter. The information communication technology revolution has indeed leveled the playing field for people across developed and developing societies. An Ivy-league education is at the finger tips of students around the world. Economic reforms undertaken by Nepal in early 1990s are also to be thanked for this wonderful opportunity I got. Nepal opened up its economy to the world and liberalized a few sectors (internet and telecommunications being one of them) during the reforms. And thanks to it, today more and more Nepalese have access to telecommunication services as well as the internet. Thanks to the increased competition among telecommunication service providers as well as internet service providers, the cost of access to internet have come down significantly and almost one-fourth of Nepalese are estimated to have access to the internet. I am sure the numbers will go up significantly in future and the day when every Nepalese will have access to internet is not far away.

However, when I look at some other aspects of lives of ordinary Nepalese, I find that the future that I dream of is nowhere as near as I would want it to be. Till date around 63 percent of households in Nepal lack access to electricity. Even the rest who have access to electricity suffer from power cuts during dry seasons lasting up to 16 hours daily. Ironically, Nepal is said to have a potential of generating more than 43000 Megawatt of electricity from hydro-power alone which would be enough to make Nepal a middle-income country through electricity exports. Power sector was among the sectors not addressed by the economic reforms of early 1990s and we still have a state-owned monopoly Nepal Electricity Authority which controls the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in Nepal. It amazes me how Nepal Electricity Authority manages to incur huge losses despite being a monopoly and how could it hire 11000 plus employees when it has already accumulated so huge amount of liabilities. While 63 percent of our households are reeling in darkness, Nepal Electricity Authority has become a preferred avenue for corruption and nepotism for politicians as shown by the recent arrest of a number of Nepal Electricity Authority officials for their possible involvement in a multimillion-dollar transformer purchase scam.

It has been less than two decades since internet came to Nepal and yet around one fourth of the population already have access to it and the number is increasing rapidly. On the other hand, Nepal got its first hydro-power plant more than a century ago in 1911 in the form of Pharping hydro-power plant. But even after a century later, about two-thirds of Nepalese households do not have access to something as basic as electricity. It infuriates me to see that politicians haggle over who to recruit as managing director of Nepal Electricity Authority or whom to award a certain hydro-power project while general public is suffering under power crisis. I believe Nepal is in dire need of economic reforms, especially in basic utility sectors like hydro-power. There is a need to introduce and encourage competition in this sector which will eventually not only result in better delivery of services but also encourage innovations. The government should break the monopoly of Nepal Electricity Authority and make it more accountable to the consumers it is supposed to serve by opening up the sectors for private players. The government should also restructure the organization under a private-public-partnership model so that it becomes more effective and efficient without losing the sight of its objectives. Only then, we can dream of a day when we will be taking energy as granted like many of us do to internet

CA Election 2013- FPTP Results Infographics

Youth Representation in the Constituent Assembly Elections (CA), 2013 from Dipendra K.C.

This infographics was published in Nepal Magazine in Nepali language: http://www.ekantipur.com/nepal/article/?id=6158

Statistical Analysis of Youth Candidacy in the Constituent Assembly Election, 2013 - Nepal

Statistical observation on Youths as candidates in the CA Elections, 2013 from Dipendra K.C.

Urging Youths to Vote

This small piece of suggestion appeared in the GenNext of Republica of November 19, 2013

http://e.myrepublica.com/component/flippingbook/book/1421-republica-19-nov-2013/1-republica.html

YUWA let's Vote - Television Show

On Novmber 2, 2013, I was invited to talk on a TV Show in News 24 Television. The issue of the program was the necessity for young people to vote. Two other guests, Santosh Acharya from Youth Initiative and Pradeep Bashyal from Nepal Magazine were with me.

Below are some clips from the 1.5 hour long program. The program also highlighted the statistics that was worked by me.

Age of Candidates of CA Election, 2070 (FPTP)

The age of Youth in Nepal is heavily contested issue. The national Youth policy of the country defines “Youth” as the people who are in the age bracket of 15-40 whereas several NGOs and INGOs operating in the country have their own version of definition. YUWA defines the age youth as 15-29. United Nations defines the age bracket for youth as 15-24.

The Constitutional Assembly Election of Nepal which is all set to happen November this year will see 40.75% youth candidates competing. A recent analysis done jointly by me and one of my colleague, Sumit portrays an interesting picture of the trend of age of the candidates of the political parties.

The lowest age of the candidates is 25 and this extends till 85. 249 candidates are aged 42. The top 5 weight of candidates is in between 35-43. The national average age of the candidates is 53.

The graph below should be self-explanatory.

Possibility of mHealth intervention in Nepal

Nepal is located in the Himalayas and contains eight of the world’s ten highest peaks. Its remoteness has created inaccessibility and limited the access to health information and delivery of health services. Apart from by foot, no better alternatives of transportation for seeking health services are available in most of the rural parts of the country. Because of which, a significant delay occurs in getting appropriate treatment in the short run. Opposite, a significant gap of information about sexual and reproductive health among adolescents has been measured in recent years. This is mainly because the application of traditional approaches occupies major part of disseminating health related information.

For instance, according to the National Demographic Health Survey (NODS-2011), knowledge level with regard to family planning among 15-19 years age group among married women is 99.9% whereas current use of contraceptives is only 14.4%. However, 41.5% of these women still reported to have unmet needs. Similarly, 97% of male and 88.7% of female of age group 15-19 years have heard about HIV and AIDS, but at the same time while comparing the comprehensive knowledge on preventive measures amongst the same group was found only 32.7% and 25% respectively. 

Furthermore, According to Nepal Adolescents and Youth Survey, 2012, there is poor communication among youth when it comes to discussion about sexual health. 51.80% young girls (10-24) were reported having discussed about the issues related to marriage, pregnancy, menstruation, love, family planning, sexual intercourse, wet dreams and puberty which is more than 48.2% young boys. Observing the scenario, better options for providing health information and services are to be identified. The stigmatized sensitivity of the SRHR issue demands youth friendly, easily acceptable and immediate source of information.

mHealth may be an effective way of reaching the people mostly in the remote areas in a cost-effective way. mHealth involves the use of mobile phones and other wireless devices to promote health education and raising awareness among target groups, by delivering health information and services, disease management, treatment protocols and linking data of clients to health insurance providers, etc.

Mobile technology has made a recent and rapid appearance into low- and middle-income countries like Nepal, along with the improvements in telecommunications, technology infrastructure and reduced costs of mobile handsets. Nepal Telecommunication Authority states that over 75% of the population has now access to a mobile phone. Mobile technology can be a method with enormous potential of disseminating knowledge to people who do not have easy and immediate access to health information or health facilities in Nepal. Considering the fact that a large part of the population is connected with the communication network based on an explosive increase of smartphones and mobile internet access, the possibility of delivering health information and services to the needy people using mobile technology is high.

The National Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health (ASRH) Communication Strategy, 2011 has further suggested for the application of effective media advocacy toolkit as well as harnessing wireless Technology. It strongly advocates that the Mobile technology can play a vital role in raising awareness about ASRH and creating demand for services by promoting Adolescent Friendly Service centers and Services. Reach out to mobile companies and others in mobile technology to reach adolescents – through texts, downloadable mobile applications that are games, ringtones, downloadable adolescent ‘real’ stories, etc.

There have been several success stories of mHealth in various parts of the world. CycleTel is one of the example which was implemented by Georgetown University’s Institute of Reproductive Health (IRH). CycleTel empowers women by providing them with accessible reproductive health information through SMS. The prototype was tasted in two cities of India, Lucknow and New Delhi. A woman learns about CycleTel and opts to join the service by sending an SMS to a designated number. She sends the date of her last period to the service and begins using CycleTel. The service alerts her of her fertile days during each cycle. Additional messages support correct use of the method, help her monitor her cycle length, and offer information on other reproductive health issues, such as the importance of optimal birth spacing.

Some other successful cases are Wazazi Nipendeni from Tanzania, Project Masiluleke of South Africa, Andhra Pradesh Encephalitis Syndrome Surveillance Information Management System (AESSIMS),  Nacer from Peru, National Immunization Programme (Measles Rubella Campaign 2068-69), Nepal.

With the rising mobile penetration rate in Nepal, and existing policy framework provide a very plausible reason in the urgency of mHealth intervention in Nepal. There is a need of coordinated effort among the works being conducted by different development stakeholders. After studying several success stories of mHealth intervention, the time has now come it be used in Nepal as well.

The technological intervention can be made for several reasons. Some of the areas, where the intervention could be implemented but not limited to are, for immunization tracking during institutional delivery; for continuous information supply for immunization schedule; for antenatal checkup of young pregnant girls; for sending reminders and information of family planning methods and frequency, eg. Send SMS at the interval of every 3 months for the reminder of Depo; for tracking and sending useful information to track and monitor the growth of children; for several awareness campaigns; for increased accountability of youth friendly health services and for coordinated effort among various stakeholders like Government, I/NGOs, Telecommunication operators, existing health service providers, and activists is the key to the success of such future technological interventions in the sector of Health in Nepal.

Radio Interview in "The Human Face"

On August 6, 2013, I was invited to share my opinion on challenges of running a youth organization. The program was aired live on Citizens FM.

Here is what they wrote:

Last Wednesday on The Human Face, we had a energetic and vibrant guest Mr. Dipendra K.C to talk on the issue of "youth".

Mr. K.C is president and cofounder of an youth led organisation " YUWA"which has been currently working on 4 thematic areas:
1. Active Citizenship
2. HIV/AIDS ; Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights 
3. Global Information Access
4. Economic Initiation & Innovation

Mr. Dipendra K.C defines youth as change agent who are the PRESENT of any nation and also the FUTURE. He considers youth organizations as an open platform for the youngsters, where they can experiment on their dreams and determination. "Strong team work, good vision, networking and determination can make any young team reach a success", says Mr. K.C.
http://www.saathnepal.org/2013/08/08/the-human-face-with-dipendra-k-c/#.Uou4O8RmiFw

Out with Old

Despite the uncertainty surrounding Free Students Union (FSU) elections, political parties are going all out to strengthen their position ahead of the upcoming student election. Extravagant promotional materials inside college premises hint of a celebratory mood. But rumors of fake admissions and extravagance in campaigning definitely raise a big question about the source of money that is being pumped into these elections. The FSU election is supposed to elect a body that addresses the concerns of college-going students. However, the effectiveness of the FSUs is highly questionable. Over the years, political agendas have been put on the frontline rather than academic agendas. The FSUs have become a metastasizing tumor.
Over last few weeks, FSUs have been vehemently criticized in the media, but FSUs have turned deaf ear to the comments and suggestions coming their way. Ideologically blindfolded leaders see nothing except what serves their narrow interests. Hence they openly flout election guidelines they themselves created. Apart from FSUs, the silence of academic and administrative leaders of Tribhuvan University and students is also to be blamed for this unruliness. 

Time has come we started to question the rationale behind political FSUs and to look for an alternative to FSUs, which routinely fail to raise academic and other issues faced by students. Rather than invest millions for election of student body, it would be wise to invest in welfare of students. But this can happen only when university authorities and students partner for promotion of quality education rather than petty politics.
The alternative is a new system for formation of FSUs in colleges. The new system of students union should incorporate the concept of clubs and other sub-divisions under the leadership and supervision of the union. Elections should start in the classroom. This can be in the form of electing class representatives (CRs) or class captain every year. To make election inclusive, one male and one female can be elected from a class for representation in the student’s union where all CRs meet. The executive team can be elected from among them. For instance, if a college has 15 different classrooms, there will be 30 elected CRs in the council and the executive team can be elected from among them. The size of the executive team can be need-based. 


Republica

Furthermore, multiple student clubs addressing the varied interests of students must exist in colleges under the supervision and leadership of the union. The clubs should have a democratic system where members of a particular club are free to choose their desired leadership. Students should be free to open a new club under student union after getting enough members and after making a strong case that their need is not being met by existing clubs.

The student’s union should act as an umbrella body that guides and governs the plans and activities of all other clubs in the college. The student’s union thus formed can sit with college administration with plans of the union and clubs and try to fit the activities in the academic calendar. This way, student’s union will essentially be a student’s body. Exams, results and other academic activities start happening according to the calendar and everybody benefits.

There should be clear demarcation of roles and responsibilities of student union and college administration. Student union should not be provided the right to hamper academic programs and college administration should not be allowed to meddle in the activities of students.
This model has multiple advantages for universities, students and the nation as a whole. The academic calendar comes back on track. Large number of students will directly benefit as several kinds of activities will occur at the college and they can participate in the one they feel meets their interest.

Furthermore, a large chunk of students get the opportunity to practice leadership. They can organize programs under different clubs or they can take charge of any club or student union itself. The model further helps in actualization of student’s issues as they can directly be carried to the student’s union by CRs.
The model is already in place at few private colleges of Kathmandu and is serving pretty well. The KCM Student Council is a case in point. The council started in 2003 and is independent from college management and political parties, yet its annual financial transactions exceed Rs 1,500,000, which is essentially student earned money for student council. Ultimately, the amount is invested in various student activities.
This is a viable alternative to the existing FSU system. As time passes, traditional institutions need to be reviewed and updated. If the FSUs are not ready to mend their ways, students and the universities should be ready to adopt the new model.
Republica

Lessons from Lanka

Dial 1919 from a telephone in Sri Lanka and you can get information on 77 different government bodies in three major languages of the country—Sinhala, Tamil, and English. In Sri Lanka, a range of ICT facilities have been introduced to strengthen information management in governance, education, healthcare, industry, agriculture, fisheries, social security and judicial systems, especially at the grassroots level.

The institutional mechanisms of Sri Lanka have been altered for rapid development of society using ICT. Since 2005, the ICT Agency of Sri Lanka (ICTA) has provided leadership in the application of ICT. Its “e-Sri Lanka” program has achieved major economic, developmental, and social improvements. 

In 2010, the government set up a separate Ministry for Information & Communication Technology to strengthen ICT leadership, advance the sector, and collaborate with other stakeholders. The country’s national broadband policy aims at narrowing down the digital divide by implementing an island-wide national backbone network that provides low cost and high-speed connectivity through competition among Internet service providers.

According to ICTA, the ICT literacy rate in Sri Lanka has grown from approximately 5 percent in 2004 to almost 40 percent in 2012. The target is 75 percent by 2015. Cellular phone penetration stands at over 100 percent, and broadband technologies are increasingly available in rural areas.
The rural telecenter network, or the “Nenasala” Centers (“Wisdom outlets” program), provide an important opportunity for rural population to learn. They promote partnerships among government and private organizations, individual entrepreneurs and civil society organizations to create a knowledgeable society. The Ministry of Technology & Research also operates another island-wide network named “Vidatha.” These multi service centers promote access to scientific and technological applications, including ICT, to rural communities.


apt.int

One of the telecenters established in the periphery of a temple at Udubaddawa of Kurunegala district provides a wide range of facilities. This telecenter primarily focuses on improving local people’s English language and computer skills. During their leisure, young college students take regular English courses and Diplomas in computer courses at the center at subsidized rates. It currently provides a six-month long computer Diploma course. Students can sit for a standardized test after the completion of the course, and can acquire the certificate at a low cost. 

The ICT Center not only serves as a learning center but also acts as a business unit. People can pay their utility bills and access internet facility at a nominal cost. It also serves as a coordinating agency for other distance learning units scattered over small villages where young kids are taught English by local teachers. Sometimes, religious centers are used as learning centers, which attracts a lot of people. 

Today, more than 300 IT and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) companies operate in Sri Lanka, serviced by a workforce of over 60,000, and generating US $400 million in exports. Sri Lanka expects to create a 100,000-strong workforce in the ICT sector in the next four to five years.

According to Nepal Telecommunication Authority (NTA), in March 15, 2013, telephone penetration in Nepal had reached 73.88 percent, and internet penetration had reached more than 23 percent. More than 90 percent of them use mobile devices to connect to the internet.

This indicates growing demand for technological knowledge and tools among the general public, a hopeful sign for a country situated next to technological giants like India and China. 

The question is: Have we adapted to this need? The answer, in the existing investment scenario and government IT policy, is a bold “NO”. The creation of ICT centers in rural Nepal is the need of the hour. There have been some efforts to create similar centers, but they have not been very successful in generating results because of the absence of strong policy backing and lack of understanding of the needs of local people.

No rural Nepali will reject the opportunity to learn computer skills and English language, if the lessons are available at a reasonable rate at their doorsteps. In this connection, ICT centers with physical resources should be started, through which people can learn computer skills and access the Internet. The telecommunication companies of Nepal should also think of joining hands with the government and social organizations to create a technologically sound workforce.

People are charged for free passport forms, migrant workers are cheated with fake airline tickets, farmers are paid low price for their products by middlemen. Many of these problems, as well as many other social problems, can be easily addressed by incorporating technology in daily life. 
The growth achieved by Sri Lanka in last 7-8 years is replicable, but only given strong political will. Both top-down and bottom-up approaches are needed to institutionalize technological growth and bring about desired social change. 

The author recently won South Asia Regional Grant Competition on ICT and Youth jointly organized by The World Bank and Microsoft® in Colombo, Sri Lanka
dipendra@YUWA.org.np
Republica

Ringing in change

The recent amendment in the 1980 TU regulation on Organization and Educational Administration regarding the age of candidacy on Free Student Union (FSU) election has initiated a fresh discussion on the age of youth politicians. The Supreme Court (SC) order has further provided legitimacy to the amendment made by TU. At the aftermath of the amendment, the 2015 FSU elections will see only candidates aged below 28 competing for the elections. The recent amendments have been widely acclaimed by students, academia, society, and some student unions.

The age bar levied thus will end the deeply rooted culture of old leaders competing in FSU elections. The average fresher at a college is 18, while the leaders of FSUs are generally a couple decades older than these freshers. The huge age gap not only creates frustration among students, but to some extent contributes to the failure of the leaders to address students’ issues properly. The age bar will hopefully end the culture of student leaders looking for political shortcuts through FSUs. 

It is not only the FSU that requires an age bar. Age bar is also much needed in the youth social sector. The count of umbrella organizations of non-political Youth organizations has reached three. The Association of Youth organization of Nepal (AYON) has listed more than 90 registered member youth organizations in its website, while the website of Youth NGO Federation Nepal claims that it has united more than 2,000 youth-led organizations of Nepal. Apart from that, several other unaffiliated youth-led organizations and youth clubs exist in Nepal. The promising number of youth led organizations becomes a matter of concern when it comes to the age of the leaders of these organizations.

Over the last couple of years, youth-led organizations have criticized the leaders of political youth organizations, calling them undemocratic and age-insensitive. To some extent, the blame for the situation goes to the country’s National Youth Policy, which is almost nonfunctional. The national youth policy defines 16-40 as the age of youth. This naïvely paves the way for the presence of older leadership at political as well as social youth organizations. The guiding document itself is not free from controversy, and lacks serious workout towards its implementation.

irnustian.com

Youth-led social organizations should also practice intra-organizational democracy, and create enough space and mechanism for the younger generation to lead. There are youth organizations which are led by individuals rather than by a team of young people. The faces of the leaderships have not changed for several years. Rather than creating space and opportunity for young people, several youth-led organizations have been heavily dominated by a handful of older people.

Until and unless the leadership is handed over from a handful people to fresh talents, youth-led social organizations will not be able to make remarkable or sustainable impacts on society, and do not hold the moral authority to condemn political parties. The change should start from within. Furthermore, youth-led social organizations are heavily dependent on donor agencies, and leadership tends not to change due to heavy budgeted projects and long project durations. 

A change in the leadership at youth-led NGOs is required for them to be able to raise burning social issues related to youth. Issues faced by a 25-year-old female can be better raised by a 25-year-old female than a 35-year-old male. Besides, the issues that were relevant ten years ago may not be of concern now, and this change in priorities can only be mainstreamed when youth organizations are led by fresh leaders.

There are models of youth-led social organizations like Rotary Club and Leo Club where the leadership transfers every year, providing leadership practice to several young people. However, the trend is not carried over in other youth-led NGOs of Nepal. Asking all the youth led NGOs to follow the same model will again be impractical, considering the nature of activities that they carry out. However, youth led NGOs can certainly practice a model where the leadership changes every 2-3 years.

Both bottom-up and top-to-bottom approaches must be adopted to address the issue of leadership stagnancy in youth-led social organizations. These organizations need to adopt a clear democratic process in practice rather than in paper to promote leadership transformation. To aid that, the national youth policy must be updated to meet the changed expectations of young people, and the age bar for a person to be considered “youth” must be reduced to 30. 

Republica

Youths yearn for change of leadership

PRAVAT JUNG GURUNG

We complain and we argue that there’s nothing much youths can do until and unless they join mainstream politics. But even if we decide to join politics, reaching a position of influence isn´t easy as the older generation is not yet ready to cede the power. It’s a catch-22 situation for the younger generation and most of us have learnt to live with it.

A host of issues concerning younger generation in Nepal have not been addressed by the government. Unemployment, among all other problems, tops the list. Every single day, Nepal is losing its “working age” population to Gulf and other countries. Nothing is being done to tap the youthful energies without which development of a country is impossible. 

Implementation of the youth policy, introduced in 2010, has failed to remedy the situation and the youth today are seeking change of the leadership.

On democracy

“We can voice ourselves more openly now compared to the past and I think Maoists are to be credited for this change,” says Dipendra KC, 23, president of YUWA, a youth organization based in Kathmandu. 

He added that people are more aware of their rights now and do not keep mum if they feel deprived of their rights. He is of the view that policy makers understand the role young people can play in the development of the country but are still hesitant to let them take the helms. 

“If I want to start a business, nobody will finance me. The Yuva Swarojgar Yojana (Youth Self-employment Fund), which was set up to provide loans to young people who want to start a business, is being used for the benefit of cadres of political parties,” KC opines.

On the other hand, Pukar Bam, 25, co-founder of Bibekshil Nepali, a political party founded by the youth, agrees with KC and adds that democracy has been fruitful only for some political leaders and party workers. Bam adds that in the recent five to six years, he has seen youth coming back from abroad seeking opportunities to do things at home. "They are very much willing to step out of their comfort zone to bring about change," he says. “I think that’s the only good thing this whole political instability has brought us,” he says, summing that the youths know if they don’t do something, everything will remain the same. 

Change doesn’t come easy and it takes time. In Nepal, however, change is not something that’s welcomed with open arms. You take a step forward and there will be scores of people trying to pull you back. That’s the point Pushpa Gurung, 23, field coordinator at Nepal Mahila Ekata Samaj, wants to make. “Unity has definitely risen since the restoration of democracy but moving forward is still difficult because there is always someone pulling you back. It does not matter even if what you are doing is for the good of the country,” she says. 

Prasun Rai, 25, an intern at Actionaid Nepal, also raises the issue of youth in the rural areas not being updated with the whole scenario. “Privileged youths are aware about a lot of things but those in the remote areas are unaware of it.”

Disagreeing with Rai’s statement, Aman Lama, 21, a member of Activista, a youth platform, says, “They are aware about the happenings. What they lack is the opportunity to express themselves. Since they are far from the capital city, they don’t have much exposure in the media and, hence, we assume that they are unaware.” Lama thinks that youth outside the Valley should also get equal space in media so that they are encouraged to do more.

On federalism

The erstwhile kingdom of Nepal was renamed Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal on May 28, 2008 when the Constituent Assembly overwhelmingly favored the abolishment of the monarchy. However, the federal system has yet to be given a complete shape as the political parties cannot decide how to go about it and how the separate states should function. 

The Constituent Assembly served its term for four years but was not able to produce the much anticipated “Constitution of Nepal” due to the inability of the parties to resolve some issues.

Rai, who thinks federalism is not suitable for Nepal, shares, “Nepal’s geography is such that federalism doesn’t make sense. People might get services faster and that need not have to travel to Kathmandu to get passports, but the cost of running the country would rise too. And if it’s the development we are talking about, it can still be done without dividing Nepal if we come up with proper plans.” 

Lama, however, pointed out another problem. “It would be difficult to put in place a proper taxation system. If one state increases the price of basic commodities, what will happen?” questions Lama. He also expressed that some states might be richer than another and that might invite instability.

Bam, too, thinks that the overall cost would rise and so would corruption. Also, he says, “We need to ask whether federalism is actually wanted by the people or the leaders. I don’t see any problems with the five development zones. It’s just that it’s not functioning very well due to the inability of the government.”

Bam is certain that the elections will take place for a new Constituent Assembly. "We should vote for people only after going through their Curriculum Vitae," he says. “We need to vote for someone who can lead us and not disappoint us and for that to happen, we need to make sure that we vote for the right person.”
Republica

Youths yearn for change of leadership

PRAVAT JUNG GURUNG

We complain and we argue that there’s nothing much youths can do until and unless they join mainstream politics. But even if we decide to join politics, reaching a position of influence isn´t easy as the older generation is not yet ready to cede the power. It’s a catch-22 situation for the younger generation and most of us have learnt to live with it.

A host of issues concerning younger generation in Nepal have not been addressed by the government. Unemployment, among all other problems, tops the list. Every single day, Nepal is losing its “working age” population to Gulf and other countries. Nothing is being done to tap the youthful energies without which development of a country is impossible. 

Implementation of the youth policy, introduced in 2010, has failed to remedy the situation and the youth today are seeking change of the leadership.

On democracy

“We can voice ourselves more openly now compared to the past and I think Maoists are to be credited for this change,” says Dipendra KC, 23, president of YUWA, a youth organization based in Kathmandu. 

He added that people are more aware of their rights now and do not keep mum if they feel deprived of their rights. He is of the view that policy makers understand the role young people can play in the development of the country but are still hesitant to let them take the helms. 

“If I want to start a business, nobody will finance me. The Yuva Swarojgar Yojana (Youth Self-employment Fund), which was set up to provide loans to young people who want to start a business, is being used for the benefit of cadres of political parties,” KC opines.

On the other hand, Pukar Bam, 25, co-founder of Bibekshil Nepali, a political party founded by the youth, agrees with KC and adds that democracy has been fruitful only for some political leaders and party workers. Bam adds that in the recent five to six years, he has seen youth coming back from abroad seeking opportunities to do things at home. "They are very much willing to step out of their comfort zone to bring about change," he says. “I think that’s the only good thing this whole political instability has brought us,” he says, summing that the youths know if they don’t do something, everything will remain the same. 

Change doesn’t come easy and it takes time. In Nepal, however, change is not something that’s welcomed with open arms. You take a step forward and there will be scores of people trying to pull you back. That’s the point Pushpa Gurung, 23, field coordinator at Nepal Mahila Ekata Samaj, wants to make. “Unity has definitely risen since the restoration of democracy but moving forward is still difficult because there is always someone pulling you back. It does not matter even if what you are doing is for the good of the country,” she says. 

Prasun Rai, 25, an intern at Actionaid Nepal, also raises the issue of youth in the rural areas not being updated with the whole scenario. “Privileged youths are aware about a lot of things but those in the remote areas are unaware of it.”

Disagreeing with Rai’s statement, Aman Lama, 21, a member of Activista, a youth platform, says, “They are aware about the happenings. What they lack is the opportunity to express themselves. Since they are far from the capital city, they don’t have much exposure in the media and, hence, we assume that they are unaware.” Lama thinks that youth outside the Valley should also get equal space in media so that they are encouraged to do more.

On federalism

The erstwhile kingdom of Nepal was renamed Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal on May 28, 2008 when the Constituent Assembly overwhelmingly favored the abolishment of the monarchy. However, the federal system has yet to be given a complete shape as the political parties cannot decide how to go about it and how the separate states should function. 

The Constituent Assembly served its term for four years but was not able to produce the much anticipated “Constitution of Nepal” due to the inability of the parties to resolve some issues.

Rai, who thinks federalism is not suitable for Nepal, shares, “Nepal’s geography is such that federalism doesn’t make sense. People might get services faster and that need not have to travel to Kathmandu to get passports, but the cost of running the country would rise too. And if it’s the development we are talking about, it can still be done without dividing Nepal if we come up with proper plans.” 

Lama, however, pointed out another problem. “It would be difficult to put in place a proper taxation system. If one state increases the price of basic commodities, what will happen?” questions Lama. He also expressed that some states might be richer than another and that might invite instability.

Bam, too, thinks that the overall cost would rise and so would corruption. Also, he says, “We need to ask whether federalism is actually wanted by the people or the leaders. I don’t see any problems with the five development zones. It’s just that it’s not functioning very well due to the inability of the government.”

Bam is certain that the elections will take place for a new Constituent Assembly. "We should vote for people only after going through their Curriculum Vitae," he says. “We need to vote for someone who can lead us and not disappoint us and for that to happen, we need to make sure that we vote for the right person.”

Secret Window

Social Media trends offer some unique experiences to the users. Confession pages, a new social media fad, are mushrooming these days. Though there is no actual evidence of how and where the global trend of confession pages started, the trend in Nepal is seen to be influenced by confessions pages in educational institutions of the US and India.

Over the last month, several confession pages have been started by anonymous users in the name of various educational institutions in Kathmandu. The anonymity of these pages is their core appeal. Lively anonymous posts collected from online forums are posted in facebook pages, which have become the new hangout destinations for a large number of youngsters.


CARDINALNEWMANSOCIETY.ORG
Page visitors wait for the mysterious admin to post new content. Their interest in reading more confessions is evident on the walls of such pages. The deluge of comments requesting the admin to post new content is an example of the craze. These kinds of pages provide students both the opportunity and the risk of expressing things they would not share with otherwise.

The use of technology as tool to raise a voice of protest is not new. Several political changes including the Arab Spring used technology as a powerful tool. In Nepal too, we have witnessed the positive use of technology for social causes. However, the recent trend is very new to the education sector. Such pages not only provide a platform to confess personal feelings but also act as a podium for students to express their views publicly on diverse issues. 

Out of 80 randomly chosen confession posts from 8 different confession pages based in Kathmandu, 38 percent were related to love and liking, 22 percent complained about teachers and schools, 19 percent were negative statements of hatred while another 19 percent were alumni who talked about their memories, and two percent were about other subjects.

The trend clearly shows us that love and mismanagement of educational institutions are not the only issues discussed. These pages also contain information that could ruin the image of a person in a single moment. Statements of hatred and negativity can be found all over the pages. This kind of negativity is establishing itself as a new way of bullying. The pages could also easily damage the hard-earned reputation of educators and educational institutions. 

These pages do not violate the rules of Facebook so long as the contents remain within the bounds of civility. Students who set up confessional pages must do so under their real names, as per Facebook policy. But they can choose to cloak their identity as page administrators. Tackling these confession pages is likely to be a challenge to the regulatory authorities due to their anonymity.

On a different note, these pages have empowered students with a unique and powerful tool which never existed in the past. Students have been using the tool to raise a voice against the malpractices at their institutions. Their posts range from complaining about the teaching-learning style at their educational institution to making fun of a particular teacher’s teaching style. But in the big picture, these forums not only provide a platform for students to express their dissatisfaction, but also point out the urgent need to understand students’ perspective in education. This will also democratize educational institutions and increase their accountability.

The power not only resides with students, this tool equally serves as a window for educators and educational institutions. It creates an opportunity to the educators to review their own activities from the perspective of the students and understand their psychology. Hence, it serves as a learning opportunity for educators and educational institutions as well.
Republica

MOOCs for global audiences

The Year 2012 was the year of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). Several leading platforms for learning, including Coursera, Udacity and EdX Online launched their services during February to April 2013. With these three startups in the technology market, education has somehow been “democratized.” The course content that was available to a handful of people is now available to the global audience.

Today, Coursera has a user base of more than 2.8 million and offers 313 courses from 62 different universities from around the globe while Udacity offers 22 courses in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and EdX offers 32 different courses from universities like Harvard and MIT. Also, EdX on its blog on March 3, 2013 announced that its system will be available open source to ease the usage of technology for education from June 1, 2013. 

These MOOCs can be very beneficial to all those who seek to learn in the true sense. A few courses do offer the certificate of completion; however, most of the courses don’t provide the credentials. The contents that are delivered through these sites are outstanding and the discussion forums and quizzes aid the learning process. In a normal course, students from more than 150 countries sign up and express their opinions over the forums, and these virtual study groups give a unique sense of learning and expand the horizon of the applicability of the contents.

Over the last 11 months, universities in the US have been heavily debating on the new trend of education. At one end of the world, technology is growing rapidly and the debate is on whether the courses should be open and free while, unfortunately, guess papers and guidebooks are all sold out in the market as exams approach.
There are countless points which could be discussed and scrutinized to see how outdated a teaching/learning mechanism we have. Even when we compare the two leading universities of the country, Tribhuvan University (TU) and Kathmandu University (KU), there is huge gap between their teaching and learning methodologies.
All universities, professors and students must feel the urgency of sensing the global educational trends. Everybody cannot afford Ivy Leagues but they can afford to sit in front of a computer and taste the way teaching/learning is done.

However, initiatives from universities alone are not capable enough for the change that we want to see. Students should also, at least, try the subjects of their interest. Since these courses are generally shorter in length, students can give it a try.

There are also constraints to this new option. With only 19% of Nepal’s population having access to Internet, language and with other barriers, it might seem difficult to attend the virtual classrooms. However, a few measures can be taken to give this new taste not only to students, colleges or universities but to all those who opt for broadening their horizon.

The government’s Youth Information Centers (YIC) and Information Centers at the VDC level could also be used as strategic learning centers for many young people. This could foster the rural learners’ accessibility to the world-class education. Furthermore, different learning centers and libraries established by several organizations in the country can be established as strategic learning centers and attract students to use their resources to learn.

Colleges and universities can arrange a learning environment for their students in their respective colleges and universities. This will provide platforms to students who don’t regularly access computer and Internet. In addition, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) can also be encouraged to provide access to these learning portals at subsidized rates.

It’s never too late to start. It has not even been a year but these MOOCs are booming. You can start your own learning experience at www.coursera.org, www.udacity.com or www.edx.org today.

Republica

अनलाइन आइकन

प्रदीप बस्याल 

पाँच महिनाअघि दीपेन्द्र केसी, २३, अमेरिकाको पि्रन्स्टन युनिभर्सिटीमा थिए। त्यहाँका डिनले एउटा सामूहिक बहसको मध्यस्थता गररिहेका थिए। बहसका लागि युनिभर्सिटीका प्राध्यापक, अनलाइन अध्ययन वेबसाइट कोर्सेराडटओआरजीका सहसंस्थापक र त्यहीँ

का एक विद्यार्थीसँगै दीपेन्द्रलाई निम्त्याइएको थियो।

विश्वविद्यालयका थुप्रै प्राध्यापक, टिचिङ् एसिस्टेन्ट (अध्यापन सहयोगी) एवं विद्यार्थीहरूले त्यो बहस निकै चाख लिएर सुने, प्रश्न-प्रतिप्रश्नहरू गरे। खासमा त्यो बहस 'अनलाइन लर्निङ्'बारे थियो । एक उत्कृष्ट विद्यार्थीका हैसियतले काठमाडौँदेखि अमेरिकाको न्युजर्सीसम्म दीपेन्द्रको यात्रा तय भएको थियो।

नेपालबाटै 'भर्चुअल' कक्षा लिइरहेका उनले पि्रन्स्टनका केही कक्षामा प्रत्यक्ष सहभागी हुने अवसर मात्र पाएनन्, प्राध्यापककै आग्रहमा एउटा कक्षामा आफ्नो अनुभवसमेत सुनाए।

 एक वर्षअघि त्रिचन्द्र कलेजमा समाजशास्त्रमा स्नातक दोस्रो वर्ष अध्ययन गररिहेका दीपेन्द्रलाई कसैले अनलाइन कोर्सबारे सुनाएका रहेछन् । त्यसैले जन्माएको उत्सुकता अनुरूप कोर्सेराडटओआरजीमा पि्रन्स्टन युनिभर्सिटीको 'समाजशास्त्रको परचिय' अध्ययन सुरु गरिहाले।

विश्वका चर्चित विश्वविद्यालयले यस्ता थुप्रै कोर्स जोकोहीले निःशुल्क पढ्न मिल्ने गरी राख्छन्। केही विश्वविद्यालयले कोर्स सफलतापूर्वक सक्नेलाई प्रमाणपत्रसमेत दिन्छन्। भन्छन्, "धेरै हदसम्म यो आफ्ना लागि चाहिने ज्ञानका लागि हुन्छ।"

त्यो कोर्समा विश्वभरबाट ४० हजार विद्यार्थीले अध्ययन गररिहेका थिए। साताको कुनै एक दिन प्राध्यापकले अध्ययन सामग्री दिन्थे भने अर्को दिन भिडियो लेक्चर। त्यसबाहेक तिनै विद्यार्थीबीच चौबीसै घन्टा विभिन्न समूह बनाएर बहस चलिरहन्थ्यो, जसलाई विश्वविद्यालयको अध्यापन सहयोगीहरूले सघाउँथे।

एक दिन प्राध्यापकले आफूसँग सीधा सम्पर्कमा रहेर छलफल गर्ने अवसर सार्वजनिक गरे। इच्छुकले सहभागिताको कारणसहित इमेल लेख्नुपथ्र्यो। त्यसअघिको सक्रियताले पनि अवसरको सुनिश्चितता निर्धारण गथ्र्यो। ६ साताका लागि डिजाइन गरएिको उक्त अध्ययनमा 'गुगल प्लस ह्याङ्आउट' सुविधामार्फत विश्वभरका प्राध्यापकसहित ६ जना सहभागी हुन मिल्थ्यो। र, सहभागीहरू पनि तयारी र उत्सुकताका आधारमा सातैपिच्छे फेरिन्थे। दीपेन्द्र भाग्यमानी निस्के। उनले लगातार पढ्ने मौका पाए। भन्छन्, "त्यहाँ हामीले समाजशास्त्रलाई स्थानीय परिवेशका आधारमा छलफल गथ्र्यौं।" कोर्स सकिएपछि प्राध्यापकले उनलाई उत्कृष्ट विद्यार्थीका रूपमा अमेरिका जाने अवसर प्रदान गरे।

नेपालजस्तो विकासोन्मुख मुलुक, जहाँ दिनको आधा समय बिजुली हुँदैन, इन्टरनेटमा १३ प्रतिशतको मात्र पहुँच छ, त्यसमाथि इन्टरनेटको गति निकै सुस्त। यस्तो ठाउँबाट अनलाइन कोर्स पढेर दीपेन्द्र सफलताको त्यो हदसम्म पुगेको देखेर सबै दंग परे। विश्वविद्यालयले उनलाई उपहार स्वरूप अझै पढ्ने माहोल बनोस् भनेर आइप्याड उपहार दियो। उनलाई उद्धृत गर्दै अमेरिकी सञ्चारमाध्यमहरू दी न्युयोर्क टाइम्स र सीएनएनले समेत सामग्री तयार पारे।

अहिलेसम्म उनले त्यसबाहेक 'सोसल नेटवर्क एनलाइसिस', 'इकोनोमिक फर म्यानेजर्स', 'मोडल थिंकिङ्'जस्ता कोर्स अनलाइनमै पढेर सकेका छन्। "विश्वका शीर्ष विश्वविद्यालयमा पढ्न चाहने सबैको इच्छा पूरा नहुन सक्छ तर अब त्यहाँको शैक्षिक सामग्रीबाट भने वञ्चित भइँदैन," दीपेन्द्र सुनाउँछन्, "त्यसरी नै पढ्नेहरूको स-साना भर्चुअल गु्रपमा सहभागी भएर समेत कलेजको जस्तै अनुभव लिन सकिन्छ।"

पि्रन्स्टनमा गएसँगै उनको चर्चा भर्चुअल विद्यार्थीमाझ चुलिएको छ। विभिन्न देशका भर्चुअल गु्रपमा उनी अतिथि वक्ताका रूपमा निम्त्याइन्छन्। भन्छन्, "सम्बन्धलाई परिभाषित गर्ने मेरो सोचाइमा अहिले परविर्तन आइसकेको छ।"

कलेजमै पनि समाजशास्त्रलाई उनी स्वयंले हेर्ने शैली बदलेका छन्। "हामी सधैँ एकोहोरो सैद्धान्तिक कुराकै पछाडि लाग्छौँ तर समाजशास्त्रलाई निकै कम स्थानीयकरण गरेर हेर्छौं," उनी भन्छन्, "दाङको थारू बस्ती र काठमाडौँको सम्पन्न बस्तीलाई एउटै सामाजिक संरचनामा हेरेर समाजशास्त्र बुझिँदैन।"

नेपाल साप्ताहिक