UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

India

PROJECT PROPOSAL

Water and Livelihoods Security for Vulnerability Reduction in the Marwar Region of Rajasthan, India

Submitted to ITALIAN DEVELOPMENT COOPERATION (IDC) IN INDIA

Located in the drought prone region of Marwar in Rajasthan, the proposed project “Water and Livelihoods Security for Vulnerability Reduction in the Marwar Region of Rajasthan, India” builds on the recently concluded project (2005- 2009) supported by IDC in 200 villages of the region that focussed on improving access of local communities for water. The proposed project for Phase II is designed for direct interventions in 200 villages and hamlets in the project districts of Jodhpur, Pali and Barmer and simultaneously plans for wider impact across all districts of the Marwar region through the outreach programme of the project. . In addition to water availability and access, the scope of the proposed project has been expanded to include, issues of water quality and safe water access, sanitation, inclusion especially of disadvantaged groups and the piloting of sustainable water and livelihood enterprises. The project will also link-up with UNDP supported State Level Mission on Livelihoods launched by the Government of Rajasthan to support livelihood and employment strategies targeted towards disadvantaged groups in the Marwar region.

The key outcomes of the proposed project are as follows:

Outcome 1: By 2012, an enabling environment for community action created which improves access of communities, especially women and disadvantaged groups, to safe drinking water and sanitation in 200 villages and hamlets of the project area

Outcome 2: By 2012, participation and representation of women and disadvantaged groups increased in water management and local institutions in 200 villages and hamlets

Outcome 3: By 2012, the outreach of the project for wider extension and replication of community based approaches in water management in the project districts, state wide and nationally

Outcome 4: By 2012, sustainable water-based enterprises piloted in selected villagesOutcome 5: By 2015 disadvantaged people in Rajasthan including the Marwar

region benefit from improved poverty reduction policies, programmes and livelihood strategies

Implementing Partners: UNDP, Jal Bhagirathi Foundation*

Time Frame: 01 Jan 2010 – 31 December 2012

Budget: Euro 3 million: Italian Development Cooperation (Outcome 1 to 4)

Euro 782,000 (USD 1 million): Co-financing by UNDP (Outcome 5 till 2015)

UNDP envisages a long term partnership with Jal Bhagirathi Foundation. A grant of USD 1 million has already been provided by UNDP to JBF in support of the pre-launch and preparatory activities leading to this proposed phase. *Jal Bhagirathi Foundation is a registered Public Trust under the Government of Rajasthan Public Trust Act 1959. An English translated version of the certificate is attached at Annexure-XI.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Marwar region of Rajasthan in western India is the most densely populated arid zone in the world. It constitutes nearly 40 percent of the total geographical area of the state, 22 percent of its population and 34% of its livestock. The economy of the Marwar region has traditionally revolved around animal husbandry and subsistence agriculture and its primary ecological resources have been water bodies, pastures, grazing lands and sacred groves. Severe ecological degradation and increasing desertification has led to scarcity in water for drinking and productive uses, fodder, fuel wood and food availability, especially for the poor communities. At the centre of Marwar’s vulnerability is the extreme difficulty faced by it’s the human population, especially the poor and women, as well as its livestock in terms of availability, access and quality of drinking water and fodder. The communities depend mainly on storing and using rainwater for drinking as well as productive uses.

Given this context, the Italian Development Cooperation supported Jal Bhagirathi Foundation on the project titled “Vulnerability Reduction through Community Empowerment and Control of Water in the Drought Prone Areas of Marwar Region” (2005-2009) . This project designed and implemented a community-driven strategy to restore and manage traditional water harvesting structures in three districts of Marwar – Pali, Barmer and Jodhpur. The funds, channelled through UNDP, helped to mobilise communities in 200 villages and organise them into local institutions to develop and manage their water harvesting systems. Concluded in June 2009, in a relatively short period, the project resulted in significant improvement in overall availability and access to water for around 271,000 people or 4.1% percent of the total district population, reduction in distress months and time spent by women and girls to fetch water and household expenditure on purchasing water.

Based on learning’s from the above project, the proposed project “Water and Livelihoods Security for Vulnerability Reduction in the Marwar Region of Rajasthan, India” seeks funding for Euros 3 million from Italian Development Cooperation. It proposes direct intervention in 200 villages and dhanis as well as plans for impact across all districts of Marwar, at state, national and international levels.

Direct intervention in 200 villages will be carried out across the 3 districts, and will involve (a) deepening the work on water in the project area by replicating the successful community driven approach to water management and address issues related to water security, water quality and sanitation (b) strengthening the participation of women and disadvantaged groups in water management systems and their representation in local decision making bodies (c) exploring and testing options for strengthening the livelihood security of the local communities, especially for women and disadvantaged groups.

The project’s impact beyond 200 villages is planned under the ongoing project. It is proposed to strengthen the institutional and technical capacity of the water resource centre for an effective outreach to all 7 districts of the Marwar region and to a range of stakeholders – communities, PRI members, block and district government officials and NGO workers from within and outside Marwar, including other states of India and other countries. The Centre will also be a repository of knowledge, best practices, useful data and information as well as a conclave for networking and policy advocacy.

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In Rajasthan, UNDP has also been supporting the state government to design and implement holistic livelihood strategies targeted to disadvantaged groups in different agro-ecological zones and for diverse streams of employment. As part of this project, UNDP will facilitate a linkage with its state wide initiative which also includes livelihood promotion for disadvantaged groups in the Marwar region. This initiative will support pilot demonstrations at the field level, showcase successful interventions and mainstream piloted strategies through partnering with district governments, NGOs and private sector.

The proposed project is designed to contribute to the Government of India’s focus during the 11th National Five Year Plan on expanding development opportunities for disadvantaged groups and regions. It is also aligned with the UNDP Country Programme (2008-12) and especially focuses on capacity building of poor communities to reduce their vulnerabilities to environment related risks and to improve their access to better incomes, livelihoods and poverty reduction programmes. The proposed project will contribute to Government of India’s efforts in contributing to the MDG targets envisaged under MDG1 (Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger) and MDG 7 (Ensure Environmental Sustainability).

1. Situation Analysis

The Marwar region of the Thar Desert in Rajasthan in western India is the most densely populated arid zone in the world. It covers an area of 13.5 million hectares comprising seven districts of Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Jalore, Barmer, Nagaur, Pali, and Sirohi. This constitutes 39.4 percent of the total geographical area of the State.

District Map of Rajasthan: The Marwar region in Western Rajasthan comprises

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Seven districts of Jodhpur, Jalore, Pali, Barmer, Nagore, Jaisalmer and Bikaner

The data on human and livestock population in the Marwar region is presented in the tables below:

Human and livestock population in the districts of Marwar Region.Districts Geographical Area

(million hectare)Population(in million)

Livestock Population(in million)

Jodhpur 2.25 2.88 3.92Jaisalmer 3.83 0.50 2.47Jalore 1. 56 1.44 1.81Barmer 2.81 1.96 4.17Nagaur 1.76 2.77 3.24Pali 1.23 1.82 2.76Sirohi 0.51 0.85 0.97Marwar Region 13.38

(39.35%)12.22

(21.69%)19.38

(35.4%)Rajasthan State 34.26 56.50 54.67Source: Census of India, 2001. Figures in parentheses reflect percentage of the state population

District wise, sex wise population and sex ratio in Marwar regionDistrict Total

Household(in million)

Total Population(in million)

Male(%)

Female(%)

Sex Ratio

Jodhpur 0.45 2.88 52.4 47.6 906.7Barmer 0.30 1.96 52.8 47.2 892.5Pali 0.33 1.82 50.5 49.5 981.0Jaisalmer 0.08 0.50 54.9 45.1 821.0Jalore 0.23 1.44 50.9 49.1 963.7Nagaur 0.42 2.77 51.3 48.7 947.5Sirohi 0.15 0.85 51.5 48.5 943.4Source: Census of India, 2001.

The region has suffered severe ecological degradation due to frequent droughts and absence of a holistic drought-proofing strategy. The crisis manifests itself in drinking water scarcity for animals and human beings. The National Habitation Survey 2003 found that about 50% of the total rural habitations of Rajasthan were not covered by the government’s water supply system, 15.5% were partially covered whereas only 33.3% habitations were fully covered with optimum water supply.

Over time, a predominantly pastoral economy has transformed into an area of intensive agriculture with scant regard to the soil profile and ground water system. The existing land use is entirely dependent on exploiting ground water leading to further desertification and scarcity in fodder, fuel wood and food availability. The region is characterized by extreme economic backwardness, environmental degradation and vulnerable livelihoods for local communities. The land use classification reveals that there is very little forest cover, less than 1 per cent; barren and uncultivated lands account for around 10 per cent; pastures 4 to 7 per cent; and cultivable wastelands up to

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5 per cent. The net sown area is more than 60 per cent and most of the cultivation is carried out under rain fed conditions. With increasing demand for water and in the absence of regulation, groundwater has been over exploited in most parts of the project area, leaving communities dependent on rainfall for meeting their water needs for domestic as well as productive uses.

Much of the state response to drought in Rajasthan has been in the form of relief activities that aim to generate immediate employment. During the summer months, the government’s response to drinking water scarcity is supplying water through tankers as a relief measure. Given this situation, the response of the community and particularly of the poor in the Marwar region has been migration in search of employment, pastures and water. In fact, the share of non-agricultural income (56.9%) is higher than income from agriculture (32.4%) and livestock (10.6%) in most villages.

The poor households living in these marginal environments have adopted various coping strategies in response to drought conditions as found in various parts of semi-arid rural India: growing a mix of crops and/or rearing a variety of livestock, entering the labour and tenancy markets as needed, drawing upon stored goods or fixed assets, adjusting consumption, borrowing and drawing upon traditional social security arrangements, and seasonal and long-term migration.

Household responses to drought can be grouped in three stages: (i) risk minimization, involving crop and herd dispersal, non-farm income diversification, and asset and other saving accumulation; (ii) risk absorption, involving the sale of livestock and non-production assets, a search for new sources of income, and collection of debts; and (iii) risk taking to survive, involving reduced consumption, the sale of productive assets, and reduced socialization. Since wealthier households have more assets, better access to credit and other social support, and more non-farm income than the poor, they are better able to maintain their level of consumption during drought related food crises. They also have better access to credit and other social support, and more non-farm income than owned by the poor.

A long-term strategy towards drought proofing, risk reduction and mitigation for the state as a whole is virtually absent. However, drought-proofing activities, although limited to micro-level initiatives of government, science and technology institutions and non-government organizations, have demonstrated the potential of reducing the vulnerability of both the environmental resources as well as of communities to shocks and stresses. Such initiatives, when designed in the context of the poor and their asset-holding, have demonstrated the positive impact of drought proofing on the poor, landless and on women and girls.

2. Background/ Context

Jal Bhagirathi Foundation (JBF), an NGO has been working in the Marwar region since 2002 to empower communities and reduce their vulnerability to environmental degradation. It has focussed on improving the water security of poor communities through renovating/creating traditional water harvesting

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and storage structures and building community institutions for their management.

In the project area, most of the villages are not covered with the water supply and are designated as ‘Not Covered’ in government records. ‘Not Covered’ habitation means that there is not even a single safe source of drinking water within 1.6 k.m. of the habitation (the source may either be public or private in nature); habitations having a source are affected with quality problems such as excess salinity, iron, fluoride, arsenic or other toxic elements or biologically contaminated; habitations where quantum of availability of safe water from any source is not enough to meet drinking and cooking needs (i.e. below 10 lpcd).

JBF has been supported in its work on water security by the Italian Development Cooperation with funds channelled through UNDP. In addition, UNDP provided a planning grant of $300,000 over 2003-04 which enabled JBF to set up its team and develop a detailed plan of action through participatory exercises in the field. For operationalizing the full proposal and the project strategy, the Italian Development Cooperation provided a grant of USD 4.13 million in 2005. The project that concluded in 2009 reached more than 200 villages across three districts – Pali, Jodhpur and Barmer.

The project (2005-2009) provided strategic support to operationalize a long-term strategy for vulnerability reduction in the region. This involved mobilisation of local communities across the region on a large scale; testing and successful implementation of water management systems suited for the local environment and creating community based local institutions. The focus was on water security in terms of improving availability, access and quality of drinking water. Under the project, action research was also undertaken to understand the situation of water in the region and the different elements of reviving the traditional water harvesting system to improve water availability for local communities. The system involves bringing rainwater in the catchment area (agor) to the village pond (talaab and nadi). In terms of interventions, this requires clearance of the catchment i.e., removing natural obstructions such a loose boulder, constructing talabs and land levelling in a manner that the water falling in the catchment area flows towards the village pond and is finally diverted to it through digging of feeder channels. Revival of traditional village ponds involves desilting. While livestock are brought to the village pond for water, for household needs, water is carried through tankers to individual and community underground tanks (tankas). Additionally, construction of community tanks in schools and habitation without access to such infrastructure is facilitated. A community fund (Jal Kosh) has been set up in each project village for ensuring maintenance of structures. This Jal Kosh raises resources through a nominal water tariff changed for water transported from village pond to community/ individual tanks.

The recently concluded project (2005-2009) brought about a significant improvement in water security in the project area. The impact of the project on water security has been reviewed in detail through numerous evaluations and international missions of experts and dignitaries. Some of the significant achievements are:

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The project recorded coverage of 220 villages and hamlets and benefitted nearly 271,000 people in the project area.

291 water harvesting structures were constructed/revived by Village water user associations or Jal Sabhas.

Communities trained to keep the catchments of community tanks clean as well as providing hand pumps on the periphery of the catchment to access water for household needs.

Access to water for drinking and other household needs were brought within a radius of 100-250 meters for a household. The Government of India’s norm for providing drinking water is within 1.6 km from the household.

Community contribution to projects in cash or kind (voluntary labour) reported from all sites and on an average covered 30 percent of the total project cost at the village level.

294 Jal Sabhas, 4 Jal Samitis and 1 Jal Parishad were formed. A total of 55 Jal Mandals (SHG’s) were been formed. By the end of June

2009, these groups had saved a total of approx USD 33,500) The Water Resource Centre became an operational source of training

and awareness generation. Water distress months reduced considerably, ranging from 3 to 6

months, as well as expenditure towards purchase of water during these months also reduced.

Women were saved from the drudgery of walking for 3-4 kms (5-6 hours) every day due to the creation of community storage structures close to their homes.

The project supported strong inclusion and as a result, women and men from Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe groups own more than 46% of the community tanks.

Furthermore the project has helped create a network and functional linkages with civil society protagonists at all levels. At the local level, the project has supported formation of a network of 125 civil society institutions operating in the Marwar region. At the national and international levels, JBF has secured membership in various forums including IUCN, WWF, and various task forces and steering committees at state level including the European Union supported state level programme on water sector. The organizational and operational capacity of JBF was also improved overtime. A team of professionals and volunteers has worked with communities to carry out the field activities. It has set up comprehensive project management and monitoring systems and has been awarded the ISO 9001:2000 certification for “Altruistic management of programs that promote sustainable levels of human interaction with natural resources and facilitate community empowerment to ensure their access to economic resources”. The project has also enabled JBF to play a role as a key stakeholder in the arena of policy advocacy at the regional and state level. The Water Resource Centre established under the project is beginning to serve as a conclave for networking, a repository of manuals and guidelines to work with communities and for training of NGOs and community leaders.

The project (2005-09) was located with the larger UNDP programme on Disaster Risk Management, the achievements of which are attached in

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Annexure V. A snapshot of project achievements is also provided in Annexure I. It is worthwhile to mention here that while tangible impacts are found in the project villages, the situation in many villages/ areas not covered by the project as yet remains unchanged. Further, while the outreach of the project was remarkable at 271,000 people, it covered 4.1 % of the total district population and 50.2% of the project area population.

Though the project concluded successfully, some challenges still remain and new areas that are closely linked to vulnerability reduction of communities have also emerged. The primary concern is still to enhance outreach and ensure that practices emerging in project villages are aptly understood and replicated elsewhere. Water quality is another area of concern and hence a need to bring to the field a range of technologies for treating water where communities themselves can play a role and offer potential for fostering partnerships with public and private agencies. Awareness on improved hygiene practices and sanitation facilities is an important area given that a substantial part of the income goes towards health expenditure of which about 60% is due to water-borne diseases1. Other health hazards arise from people and particularly animals consuming brackish water and people taking bath with it. According to another study2 more than 75% villages in the area have groundwater problems associated with high TDS, nitrate and fluoride contents. Further, women’s empowerment and their participation in water management continue to be an area that needs more attention. The project needs to pursue inclusion of more women especially in multi-caste Jal Sabhas where their representation stands at 14 percent. While it is recognized that remains a challenge given the semi-feudal context of the communities in the project area; however is a potential to design strategies in this regard which include increasing the number of women field workers, engendering micro-planning processes and training programmes to specific actions in the field that bring women in decision making and more strategic roles.

As mentioned earlier, livelihood is another serious challenge faced by the state and its people. In response to this challenge, the government of Rajasthan launched a Mission on Livelihoods in 2004. With UNDP’s support under its new Country Programme (2008-12) to the state livelihood mission in Rajasthan3, the project aims to expand its vistas by inter locking water security and access with livelihood promotion through field pilots and innovations.

3. Project Scope & Strategy

1 As per a study quoted in a report by MIT students for JBF (Feb 2007), the average per capita expenditure on health in the project area is Rs.1500-2000/ yr. 2 Public Health Engineering Department, Government of Rajasthan, Jaipur (2003). 3 BASIX – a new generation livelihood promotion organisation, has been providing technical assistance to the Mission since 2005 in designing and implementing holistic livelihood strategies targeted to disadvantaged groups in different agro-ecological zones and for diverse streams of employment. The achievements of the Mission till date are provided in Annexure VI

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The proposed project “Water and Livelihoods Security for Vulnerability Reduction in the Marwar Region of Rajasthan, India” will extend and enhance the work supported under the recently concluded (June 2009) Italian Development Cooperation funded project “Vulnerability Reduction through Community Empowerment and Control of Water in the Marwar Region”.

The scope of the proposed project (2010-2012) builds on the experience and achievements of the recently concluded IDC supported project with Jal Bhagirathi Foundation as well as the UNDP supported project with the Rajasthan Mission on Livelihoods (RMoL). The proposed project contributes directly to MDG 7 goal on environmental sustainability and to MDG 1 on eradication of extreme poverty and hunger. It is aligned with national and state government focus under the 11th Five Year Plan on expanding development opportunities for disadvantaged groups and regions. In response to national priorities and with a focus on 7 states that are among the poorest in India, including Rajasthan, the new GOI-UNDP country programme (2008-12) (Annexure VII) seeks to promote social, economic and political inclusion of the most disadvantaged, especially women and girls. The proposed project is aligned to the UNDP Country Programme Outcome 4.1: “Communities are aware of their vulnerabilities, and adequately prepared to manage (and reduce) disaster and environmental related risks” and Outcome 1.1: “Improved effectiveness of poverty reduction and livelihood promotion programmes in disadvantaged regions and for vulnerable groups, especially women”

To actualise the above, the proposed project (2010-2012) aims to create water security and access of communities to safe drinking water in 200 villages by supporting traditional water management systems and appropriate technological interventions. The project also forges linkages between water security, business development and livelihood promotion by piloting public-private-community partnerships by setting up community based water enterprises, rural tourism hubs and livelihood resource centres. While doing so it will ensure access and participation of disadvantaged groups and women.

Further the project will capitalise on its technical expertise and field level acumen for policy dialogue, training, capacity development through strengthening of the Water Resource Centre, which will serve as a sustainable knowledge repository at the local, regional, national and international level.

In Marwar, addressing water issues will continue to remain at the centre of vulnerability reduction and hence the need for wider replication of community managed water harvesting and storage systems will be a major focus area of the project. At the same time, there is a need to look at a broader range of critical risks that impact the life and livelihoods of local communities, especially the poor. For this, the work on water needs to integrate the critical dimensions of quality, better hygiene practices and improved access to sanitation. Furthermore, vulnerability reduction will require simultaneous interventions for better management of other natural resources, mainly land and pastures. In Marwar, livelihoods are derived mainly from animal husbandry and subsistence agriculture, both depending

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heavily on water availability and hence impacted by water scarcity. Therefore, there is a huge potential and need to strengthen capacity of communities for adoption of a broader range of natural resource management strategies most appropriate for local ecological context. As the natural resource base gets strengthened, communities will also need support to diversify their livelihoods and reduce their risks to income and assets.

The recently concluded IDC supported project with Jal Bhagirathi Foundation has already demonstrated the setting up of community institutions at village, block and district levels to manage water systems. The communities need to be further strengthened to identify and design sustainable plans for improving their natural resource base and associated livelihoods. The increased emphasis of the government on decentralised governance envisages a greater role for communities in local institutions of self governance (panchayati raj institutions); in design, implementation and monitoring of schemes; in accessing funds and technical resources from ongoing government schemes and institutions and to voice their priorities and concerns to their elected representatives and district administration.

Finally, as mentioned in the proceeding section, there is an urgent need to improve the participation of women and socially marginalised groups – women and men from Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe groups - in local decision making bodies as well as in formal institutions of local self governance (locally known as Panchayati Raj Institutions or PRIs).

With Jal Bhagirathi as the Implementing Agency, the proposed project will adopt a three pronged strategy:

3.1 Improving Water Security

Direct intervention in 200 villages across the 3 project districts will involve (a) deepening the work on water in the project area by replicating the successful community driven approach to water management in 200 hamlets (dhanis) and villages and expanding the work to cover the related dimensions of water security, water quality and sanitation (b) strengthening the participation of women and disadvantaged groups in water management systems and their representation in local decision making bodies (c) exploring and testing options for strengthening the livelihood security of the local communities, especially for women and disadvantaged groups in the project area .

Under this, facilitating an enabling environment for community action is the most critical aspect of the JBF’s philosophy and work in the project area. This will involve: (a) social mobilization and (b) broad-based and inclusive institution building. The social mobilisation strategy seeks to nurture and promote social capital for community action and decision-making which will be translated in the field as a four-tier institutional arrangement for water management.

Under the proposed project, social mobilization activities will be carried out in 200 villages, especially with disadvantaged groups to create an enabling environment for community action. The previous project has been successful

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in designing its social mobilization strategy around traditional water management practices. This will be build upon through organization of mass awareness campaigns which will cut across caste barriers and reaches remote and inaccessible parts of the project area. Special camps will be held for community leaders and women for raising awareness on water issues and facilitating dialogue across villages in the region on the need for community action. JBF will invite government representatives and political leaders for such campaigns and hence brings the local water issues to their attention

Given the need to ensure sustainability, a four tier institutional structure will be extended to the new villages (while pre-existing structures in the old village will be strengthened). This structure comprises:

Jail Sabah or Water Users’ Association is a village level forum where people from all habitations in a village congregate, discuss problems, seek solutions and assert priorities. This institution is directly responsible for developing micro plans and specific proposals for water resource development in the village, execution of work and mobilization of community resources. Every Jail Sabah has at least one woman representative; some have all-women office bearers.

Jail Samiti or Water Development Group is a block level forum and comprises members of Jal Sabha and key community leaders from the area. They meet on a periodic basis to review proposals received from Jal Sabhas and forward the selected ones to the Jal Parishad for consideration/approval. They interact with village representatives and help them to collectively assess the prevailing situation, voice their concerns, and develop strategies to counter problems, and advocate and build equitable systems for managing and disbursing financial resources within the block.

Jal Parishad or Water Forum has been set up at Project level comprising of knowledgeable and dedicated community leaders to deliberate on macro level issues, approve or reject sanction of grant to projects submitted by Jal Sabha through the Jal Samiti and monitor progress of approved projects.

Finally there is the Jal Sansad or Stakeholders Forum for the entire Marwar region comprises all stakeholders i.e., key community leaders, government representatives, JBF staff, renowned development practitioners from NGO sector and volunteers etc. The Sansad reviews the annual progress made by JBF and on the basis of previous year’s progress, finalises the next year’s work plan. It is a common platform where all the stakeholders of JBF projects meet and interact to finalise its annual strategic planning document.

These institutional arrangements will promote a strong sense of ownership of water projects among community members and seeks to ensure the sustainability of project interventions in the long run. Training in areas such as leadership, conflict prevention and management, advocacy, planning, implementation and monitoring will be provided to community members and volunteers. Special emphasis will be laid on strengthening effective participation of socially marginalized groups and women in these institutions.

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Water quality has been taken as important area for intervention under the proposed project. An action research approach will be adopted to test different technologies for improving access of communities to quality water. National and international experience as well as expertise will be brought on board to develop solutions.

3.2 Impacting beyond 200 villages- Expanding Outreach by creating a Knowledge Reservoir:

The strengthening of the Water Resource Centre (WRC), , will build institutional and technical capacity of a range of stakeholders – communities, PRI members, block and district government officials and NGO workers. This centre will provide effective outreach of technical expertise, trainings and generate good practices for the benefit of all 7 districts of the Marwar region and beyond at state, national and international level. To this end, the WRC will be equipped with technology applications and other scientific tools etc. which will enable it to store, retrieve and analyse data that can be then used for planning, monitoring, impact analysis and for advocacy. It will serve as a hub of knowledge with data from government and independent sources on water (availability, quality, and access), sanitation, gender and exclusion related studies, government schemes and programmes within the project area. It will undertake evidence based advocacy to influence design and implementation of relevant water sector schemes in the project districts e.g., those related to drinking water, drought proofing and the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme. As a part of the documentation of this project to strengthen the WRC, based on the recommendations of the Italian Evaluation Mission, an Agreement between UNDP, Italian Embassy and JBF as per Annexure XIII, will be signed regarding the future purposes of the WRC.

Further, The Government of Rajasthan in collaboration with the European Union has set up the State Partnership Programme (SPP) which commits the Commission to support the state government’s new water sector policy. JBF has been included as a member of the Steering Committee as a Civil Society Organisation to advise the government on water sector reforms and policies and will use the learning’s, policy recommendations emerging from work at the Water Resource Centre to inform better practices in the sector.

3.3 Improving Livelihood Security

In Rajasthan, UNDP has also been supporting the state government’s initiative, the Rajasthan Mission on Livelihoods (RMoL), to design and implement holistic livelihood strategies targeted to disadvantaged groups in different agro-ecological zones and for diverse streams of employment. Considering the fact that livelihood interventions require a long term perspective, UNDP envisages support for the Marwar region till at least 2015.

UNDP will facilitate partnership building between the RMoL and development organisations working in the Marwar region, including Jal Bhagirathi Foundation. The Marwar Lok Vikas Jal Manch, a forum of 125 NGO’s and civil society organizations working in Marwar also offers immense potential for Jal Bhagirathi Foundation and the Rajasthan Mission on Livelihoods to initiate a structured

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collaboration on livelihood promotion in the Marwar Region. The Mission will bring on board its expertise of working with grassroots organisations to identify livelihood interventions that are best suited for their ecological context and seek to strengthen existing livelihoods or introduce new opportunities. The Mission has established strong links with key departments in the government and is mandated to work with them for better delivery of their services and schemes in the area of livelihood promotion. It is also well positioned to facilitate convergence between different stakeholders in livelihood promotion - local communities, NGOs, local level government, institutions of local self governance (panchayats), private sector and technical institutions. The Mission is also mandated to support district and state government to upscale successful interventions tested in the field at local, regional and state level.

Proposed Outcomes, Outputs and Details of Activities (2010-2012)

Outcome 1: By 2012, an enabling environment for community action created which improves access of communities, especially women and disadvantaged groups, to safe drinking water in 200 hamlets (dhanis) and villages and sanitationExpected output 1.1: Improved availability of drinking water for poor households and their livestock through creation of decentralised water harvesting and storage infrastructure.

Activities1.1.1Social mobilisation of local communities for conservation and management of water resources through awareness campaigns, village meetings and exposure visits.- Including Supporting the community to identify households that face

most difficulties in terms of availability and access to water both for drinking and for their livestock.

- Creating awareness and support training for women self-help groups and community based institutions on the importance of hygiene practices in improving the health status, especially of women and children.

1.1.2 Services of faculty for social mobilisation, technical and audit support, operating at villages and project level1.1.3 Support capacity building of local community to prepare micro-plans, technical and project management training for construction of water harvesting structures.1.1.4 Create/strengthen the four-tier institutional arrangement in the project area by formation of village, block and project level institutions (Jal Sabhas, Jal Samitis and Jal Parishad).1.1.5 Feasibility studies for treating water quality at decentralised locations and those that can be managed by communities.1.1.6 Undertake action research and explore collaboration with technical agencies to identify the potential technologies for sanitation and water purification that can be tested in the project area.1.1.7 Construction, maintenance and restoration of traditional water harvesting structures, catchment development and in 200 hamlets and villages4.

4 All the work will be mostly sub-contracted to the Jal Sabhas (water user associations) and they will contribute land and 25%-30% of the cost of the structure in labour and material. The community contribution will be deposited in a 'jalkosh' or development fund for the future maintenance of the structure and

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Expected Output 1.2: Community management systems established under the project ensure equitable access to water at the village level, especially for women and disadvantaged groups.

1.2.1 Monitor and track indicators and implement tools for monitoring access and inclusion, setting up sustainable water management systems operating at villages and project level.

1.2.2 Training of selected disadvantaged community members- Build capacities of disadvantaged communities and their institutions to work with block and district administration and play a greater role in implementation and monitoring of national and state flagship programmes in relation to public health and water and sanitation.

Expected Output 1.3: Increased adoption of household sanitation systems and hygiene practices by communities.

1.3.1 Participatory planning and development of village sanitation plans- Appraise the range of household sanitation models tried successfully in

Rajasthan and other parts of India including an assessment of technology, cost and socio-cultural factors for their successful adoption by communities.

1.3.2 Training, awareness generation and mobilization of sanitation committees.- Create awareness about diseases related to hygine, sanitation and water

and support training for women self-help groups and community based institutions on the importance of hygiene practices in improving the health status, especially of women and children.

1.3.3 Provide financial support for construction of sanitation infrastructure in 10 villages

- Test and demonstrate household level sanitation models in at least 10 villages that suit the socio-cultural context of the region.

1.3.4 Technical and project management support including monitoring of construction of sanitation facility1.3.5 raining and capacity building on use and maintenance of the sanitation infrastructure, and on hygiene practices in 10 villages to community groups including SHGs with a focus on behaviour change1.3.6 Establishing and tracking indicators for impact of sanitation activity on health, hygiene etc,

sustenance of the project activities beyond the life of the project.

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Key Indicators At least 5% of project area population covered by 200 awareness campaigns Evident mobilization of communities around water and sanitation in 200 villages. Priorities of local communities with respect to water availability and quality

documented and analysed for 200 villages. Formation of Jal Sabhas in 200 villages and Jal Samiti at the block level. Capacity of local institutional (Jal Sabha, Jal Samiti and Jal Parishad) developed across

200 villages to successfully manage water harvesting systems and for ensuring equitable access

At least 800 people of Jal Sabha and community leaders across 200 villages trained in planning, managing and monitoring micro projects at the village level.

Development and restoration of traditional water harvesting structures, catchment development in 200 hamlets and villages

Participatory monitoring tools developed for use at the community level and community leaders/members trained on application of the monitoring tools, analysis of data and reporting.

At least 2 action oriented researches conducted and tested in the field for safe drinking water and sanitation

Total Budget Euro 1,140,452

Outcome 2: By 2012, participation and representation of women and disadvantaged groups increased in water management and local institutions in 200 villages.

ActivityExpected Output 2.1:Gender and inclusion concerns integrated in training resources developed under the project.

Increased participation of women in planning and management of water and sanitation projects at the village level.

2.1.1 Developing training resources for increasing women's and disadvantaged group's participation followed by development, implementation and monitoring of action plans at village level.

- Identify cases of women’s empowerment from within the Marwar region, Rajasthan and share these through trainings, meetings, local newspapers and community video.

Expected Output 2.2: Increased representation of women and disadvantaged groups in local institutions set up for water management under the project.

2.2.1 Track indicators and monitoring plan in consultation with communities to track women’s empowerment and inclusion of marginalised groups in local level bodies and preparation and implementation of an action plan for increasing active participation and representation of women and socially marginalised groups in the local bodies at village (Jal Sabhas), block (jal samiti) and district levels (jal parishad) as well as in planning, implementation of water related interventions.

2.2.2 Develop training modules for integrating gender and inclusion concerns in design of water management systems and for increasing women’s participation and role in water management.

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2.2.3 Support formation of women's self-help groups and inclusion in water management in 30 villages.

2.2.4 Conduct baseline, mid line and end line review to understand the extent and process of exclusion of women and socially marginalised groups from development processes and village level

Expected Output 2.3: Enhanced visibility of women in public meetings and local decision making bodies.

2.3.1 Gender faculty building capacity of women to address issues of water access and quality and sanitation and establishment of block and district level networks of women so that they can come together to discuss issues of concern, understand their rights and entitlements and to take collective action.2.3.2 Facilitate Exposure visit of network members staff and communities

Key Indicators Gender and inclusion concerns integrated in training resources developed under the project

Increased representation and participation of women and disadvantaged groups in local institutions set up for water management under the project

Enhanced visibility of women in public meetings and local decision making bodies

Total Budget Euro 166,969

Outcome 3: By 2012, the outreach of the project strengthened for wider extension and replication of community based approaches in water management in the project districts, state wide and nationally and internationally.Expected output 3.1: Public recognition of the Water Resource Centre as a centre of excellence for training and knowledge on water sector, with a focus on the poor.

Capacity building of at least 3000 number of people from villages, community based organisations, NGOs, PRIs and government officials through participation in training, workshops, orientation and exposure at the Water Resource Centre.

Activities3.1.1 Develop a vision, institutional structure and operational plan for the Water Resource Centre5 so that it emerges as a centre of excellence in imparting training and knowledge on community based water management in the Marwar region as well as state wide and nationally.- Establish partnerships with national and international resource centres,

technical agencies, experts, knowledge networks (e.g., UN Solution Exchange) and politicians (e.g. through UN engagement with Legislator’s Forums at the state level and in the Parliament).

3.1.2 Establishing the Water Resource Centre as a knowledge repository including conducting intensive primary and secondary data collection, compilation, tabulation, analysis etc.

- Establish institutional capacities and systems at the Water Resource Centre for developing and regularly updating its repository of local, national and international good practices as well as manuals and guidelines on community based approaches.

5 The purpose of the water resource centre is detailed in Annexure XIII16

3.1.3 Equip the Water Resource Centre with technology applications and other scientific tools etc. which will enable it to store, retrieve and analyse data that can be then used for planning, monitoring, impact analysis and for advocacy.- Establish an information centre at the Water Resource Centre with data

from government and independent sources on water (availability, quality, access), sanitation, gender and exclusion related studies, government schemes and programmes within the project area.

- Undertake evidence based advocacy to influence design and implementation of relevant water sector schemes in the project districts e.g., those related to drinking water, drought proofing and the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.

3.1.4 Updating the repository of manuals and guidelines and reference books- Undertake policy research and advocacy activities driven by interests of the

poor communities and their rights to influence local and state policies and programmes on water.

3.1.5 Engaging and exchange of faculty, partnerships with national and international resource centers, national and international networks etc3.1.6 Capacity building and trainings for 3000 people over 3 years3.1.7 Provide scholarships, fellowships and opportunities for internship to encourage action research and policy work on water.

Expected Output 3.2: Enhanced outreach of project results and best practices at state, national and international levels.

Strengthened institutional capacity at JBF for influencing community centred and rights based approaches in policies and programmes.

3.2.1 Organise workshops, conferences and knowledge sharing forums at the Water Resource Centre to bring in national and international experience on water policy and practice, engage on policy issues and discuss common areas of concern.

3.2.2 Undertake collaborative work with Government departments and Institutions to map scarcity issues in villages of the project area, hamlets and social groups that are vulnerable due to drinking water stress.

3.2.3 Enhance operation and infrastructure of resource centre by creating additional space for water testing, library, training and logistic facility.3.2.4 Build capacities of communities and members of PRIs in tools such as report cards and social audits to highlight issues in water situation and track performance of government and non-government funds/schemes on water.

3.2.5 Presentation of good practices and building coherence around community lead water management issues at national conferences3.2.6 Participation in major water related events such as the World Water Week, IUCN, World Water Forum that provide exposure and serve as a channel for flow of knowledge and experience.3.2.7 Develop a robust communication strategy for better outreach to communities, elected representatives and government as well visibility of the work at local, national and international levels, including communication materials and equipment other tools like community media, radio in partnership with international NGOs like Video Volunteers

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3.2.8 Continue providing institution strengthening training to local bodies set up during Phase I villages (Jal Sabhas), block (jal samiti) and district levels (jal parishad) including participation and representation of women and socially marginalised groups.

3.2.9 Continue with awareness campaigns throughout the project districts for awareness creation and mobilization of communities around water.

Key Indicators Vision document and sustainability plan for Water Resource Centre developed and available.

Spatial database on water for the project area developed. Water Centre equipped water testing laboratory and other infrastructure related to water sector

Manuals, guidelines and resource material complied and collected for use by practitioners and training institutions.

At least 3000 people trained in planning, implementing and monitoring water projects.

Formal collaborations initiated with national and international resource centres and networks.

Knowledge pool of resource persons on water initiated through fellowship/internships offered under the project.

At least 18 workshops/conferences on water organised at the Water Resource Centre.

Research/policy papers prepared, disseminated and used for advocacy Project lessons documented & shared widely at national and international

conferences A communication strategy developed and rolled out at different levels through a

range of products

Total Budget Euro 738,666

Outcome 4: By 2012, access of local communities to sustainable livelihood strategies and options improved in 30 villagesExpected output 4.1: At least 10 pilot business models of safe water enterprises for improving quality and supply of drinking water successfully demonstrated for up scaling

Activities4.1.1 Drawing up feasibility plans, business plans and models, Identify community based and public-private-community-partnership models for water treatment and distribution that can be managed by communities from the villages, women SHGs or panchayats and training community till the model reaches a break even point.

4.1.2 Introduction of safe water technologies like RO for social entrepreneurship development

Expected Output 4.2: At least 3 community managed rural tourism sites are operational and linked to established tourist networks.

4.2.1 Creation of rural tourism sites as alternative income generating options for communities in the project area This would include (including tourism related infrastructure as well as services such as home stay, crafts, hospitality, art and culture related income generating options).

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Expected Output 4.3: Livelihood and micro-enterprise development services available for at least 20 villages through 3 livelihood resource centres established under the project which will also community managed rural tourism sites that are operational and linked to established tourist networks

4.3.1 Carrying out feasibility studies and developing business plans for micro-enterprise development in partnership with livelihood promotion NGOs and Rajasthan Mission on Livelihoods. Equip the livelihood resource centres with technical staff and an operational plan for providing livelihood/microenterprise development services.

4.3.2 Setting up decentralised livelihood resource centers in the project area and livelihood planning in the catchment area.

Key Indicators At least 10 villages adopt the models for improved quality and supply of safe

drinking water on a business model approach Evidence of increased income for local communities from these enterprises

captured . Positive impact on health status. Business plans for rural tourism formulated for 3 sites. Rural tourisms sites are

operational linked to established tourist circuits. 25 % increase in number of tourists visiting the sites and % of livelihood

generation. 3 Livelihoods resource centres designed and implemented with communities. Increase in services accessed by communities

Total Budget Euro 713,913

Outcome 56: By 2015, disadvantaged people in Rajasthan including the Marwar region benefit from improved poverty reduction policies, programmes and livelihood strategies.Output :-Key livelihoods challenges for the poor and disadvantaged groups in the Marwar region identified through consultative processes with key stakeholders, including local communities.

-An action plan for livelihood promotion and vulnerability reduction for the Marwar regional developed and rolled out in partnership with Govt, NGOs, local communities, private sector, research and technical institutions etc.

-Advocacy for mainstreaming pilot intervention in

Activities5.1.1 Commission assessments and organise stakeholder consultations to understand the livelihood promotion related challenges, opportunities and constraints for the poor and especially for the disadvantaged groups in the Marwar region.

5.1.2Develop a strategy and action plan for livelihood promotion and vulnerability reduction for the Marwar region in partnership with stakeholders.

5.1.3Strengthen government’s capacities and coordination mechanisms for designing and implementation strategies for disadvantaged groups.

5.1.4 Capacity building of NGOs and organisations of the poor to strengthen and diversify the livelihood portfolio at the household and group level.

5.1.5 Support pilot demonstration in the field, showcase successful interventions and mainstream piloted strategies through partnering district governments, NGOs and private sector.

5.1.6 Identify and address areas for policy and institutional reform.

6 Activities Under Outcome 5 will be supported through UNDP co-financing component 19

programmes of Government and NGOs.

-A robust learning system established through lesson learning among network partners and project monitoring systems.

5.1.7 Support networking with state and national level livelihood organisations.

5.1.8 Set up a comprehensive monitoring system to track impact on livelihoods of the poor.

Total Budget Euro 662,000 (UNDP contribution)

UNDP will continue to play an important role at the national level wherein it brings together the lessons learnt from its different projects in the field, facilitates knowledge sharing, supports documentation and analysis of nation and state policies and programmes and brings on board international experience. This project will substantively contribute to and benefit from these national level activities. The strategy is elaborated in the table below where for each of the project objectives, the envisaged outputs and key activities are presented:

3.4 Project Sustainability This project builds on an earlier phase spread over 5 years (2005-2009). During this period, a community based model to revive traditional water harvesting structures and establishment of community driven management systems was successfully tested and demonstrated across nearly 220 villages. This phase clearly shows that building community based institutions and setting up of revolving fund for maintenance lends to future sustainability of the systems created under this phase. The idea of the water resource centre also contributed to wider dissemination of best practices and provided a centre for training, knowledge sharing and advocacy. The forthcoming phase will continue to focus on institutional strengthening of community institutions and the water resource centre. However, these activities will be intensified to reach a large number of community leaders, Pancahyati Raj members, NGO’s and government functionaries. This would enable wider and faster replication of successful strategies supported under the project. Additionally, the thrust in this phase will be on linking up communities with ongoing government schemes such as NREGS, Total Sanitation Campaign and other drought proofing projects. Through the water resource centre, action research and advocacy efforts will focus on information government schemes so that they are designed in response to the ecological and social context of the Marwar region.

With UNDP’s grant provided to JBF upto December 2009 for preparatory activities towards the main phase, the focus is on generating baselines, setting up project database, compiling M&E tools and systems, setting up of project management team, developing a detailed results based management plan and preparing detailed work plans for subsequent years.

4. Project Implementation, Monitoring and Review Arrangements

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The Project will be managed by UNDP as part of its larger GOI-UNDP programme on vulnerability reduction and livelihood promotion. The project stream funded by the Italian Development Cooperation will be implemented in the field in partnership with Jal Bhagirathi Foundation. Within the overall framework of UNDP’s NGO execution guidelines and UNDP rules and regulations, UNDP will sign a budgeted annual work plan with Jal Bhagirathi Foundation and also provide technical guidance and services for effective implementation of the project. A results based monitoring system will be created for the project and will involve regular monitoring visits and periodic external financial audits and technical reviews will be commissioned. JBF will submit quarterly financial and physical progress reports in formats provided by UNDP. UNDP in turn will submit six monthly reports to Italian Development Cooperation and will be accountable for the overall results and effective use of funds. Joint monitoring visits will also be undertaken by Italian Development cooperation and UNDP. A communication strategy for the project will be formulated to ensure visibility and communicate project results and leanings widely.

A project steering committee comprising Italian Development Cooperation, UNDP and JBF will be constituted. Representatives from the Government of Rajasthan may also be invited if government rules and regulations permit. The steering committee will be set up to review progress of the project and provide overall guidance. The project steering committee will meet at least twice in a year to:

Ensure that project goals and objectives are achieved in the defined timeframe;

Review project progress and suggest implementation strategies periodically;

Review project expenditures against activities and outcomes; and Approve Annual and Quarterly Work Plans.

JBF will be responsible for the implementation of the project in the field, including achievement of specific project results, and for the use of funds through effective process management and well established internal project review and oversight mechanisms. JBF will establish a project management team, headed by a Project Manager. The Project Manager will be responsible for the day-to-day management and monitoring of project activities and coordinating with UNDP and different stakeholders. The Project Manager will prepare the Annual Work plans to deliver on project objectives and submit it to UNDP for approval. The Project Manager will ensure that the project produces the results specified in the project document, to the required standards of quality and within the specified constraints of time and cost. An annual review meeting will be organized by JBF involving UNDP and key stakeholders in the field to review project’s progress and discuss the annual work plan. The mid-term and terminal evaluation will be commissioned in collaboration with Italian Development Cooperation. In addition, services of a Gender and Social Inclusion Specialist will be hired for specialized inputs to the project as and when required. The recruitment and staffing process will give due attention to considerations of gender equality, promoting diversity at workplace and will not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status.

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The UNDP supported stream linked with its support to the Rajasthan Mission on Livelihoods, Government of Rajasthan, will be part of the bilateral agreement between UNDP and the Mission with a special focus and dedicated resources for livelihood promotion in the Marwar region and state level work on policy, improving effectiveness of government programmes and schemes, monitoring, networking and knowledge sharing. IDC will be invited to participate in meetings organised on livelihoods promotion activities in the Marwar region. JBF and other partners in the Marwar are already part of the network created by the Mission in Rajasthan and this relationship will be strengthened further through an operational linkage facilitated with the co financing contribution from UNDP.

The Project Budget (2010-2012) A total of Euro 3 million will be received by UNDP. UNDP will release funds to Jal Bhagirathi Foundation as per its corporate guidelines that require signing of Annual Work Plans. The project will make resources available for annual reviews, audits, mid-term and terminal evaluations and as well as for technical support on important issues such as gender, inclusion and communication.

currency: Euros

Budget Lines Total BudgetIDC UNDP Total

Improving access of communities to safe drinking water and sanitation in 200 villages

1,140,452 1,140,452

Increasing participation and representation of women and disadvantaged groups in local institutions in 200 villages

166,969 - 166,969

Strengthening the outreach of the Water Resource Centre

738,666 - 738,666

Piloting sustainable water based enterprises in the project area

713,913 - 713,913

Improving poverty reduction policies, programmes and livelihood strategies for disadvantaged people in Rajasthan, including the Marwar region

- 662,000 662,000

Project technical support and capacity development

30,000 120,000 150,000

General Management Support (7%)7 210,000 - 210,000Total 3,000,000 782,000 3,782,000

UN Rate of Exchange (March 2009): 1 USD = Euro 0.782

The detailed budget for the IDC supported budget lines is provided in Annexure VIII.

Jal Bhagirathi will also contribute towards the project as per details provided in Annexure IX.7 GMS is a mandatory element of project funding as approved by UNDP’s Executive Board. It encompasses general oversight and management functions of UNDP in handling the donor contribution and providing general oversight and monitoring.

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Under this project, UNDP will contribute USD 1 million (Euro 782,000) to the project through its partnership with the Rajasthan Mission on Livelihoods. This will include focussed interventions in the Marwar region that would involve Jal Bhagirathi Foundation among its partners as well as state level work on improving effectiveness of poverty reduction and livelihood promotion programmes and policies. UNDP funds under this component will flow to the Rajasthan Mission on Livelihoods, Government of Rajasthan, as per the Annual Work Plans signed with it.

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UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME