RWDC Brochure
Why RWDC?
Foundation Initiatives
Rural Women Development Centre (Gramin Mahila Utthan Kendra) was founded in 1993 by a group of women social workers led by Aasmani Chaudhary in Dang district in Ghorahi municipality at Tharu village.
The primary focus of the organization was to promote educational rights, empowerment, maternal health rights, income generation and combating gender discrimination for backward and marginalized girls and women and create a just society.
Brief History
RWDC office was set up in an unfurnished room of mud hut house located in Tharu gaun of Ghorahi town. There were no resources to use at the outset. So, the organization was started from zero level with just few floor mates to sit on.
Celebrating Silver Jubilee
RWDC now has traversed a journey of 26 years as of this day and is now a well-established national NGO in mid western Nepal. The organization also has had a great impact on the beneficiary groups’ literacy awareness, empowerment leadership capabilities, and good governance and income generation activities after economic empowerment program was initiated through microfinance since 2003.
So, there has been a major shift of paradigm now in the outlook of rural women groups involved with RWDC microfinance programs as they are capable of taking petty loans from microfinance program to start small scale business entrepreneurship which is another form of self employment and income generation to make women self-dependent both socially and economically.
This program has helped in alleviating poverty of rural women to greater extent. RWDC has also become popular NGO in the last 26 years as an outcome of its consistent work and commitment to oversee the welfare of the rural women in this region.
RWDC has contributed substantially to maternal health of rural women who used to suffer from the problem of prolapsed uterus during the last decade. Over 24000 rural women were facilitated with recovery of prolapsed uterus through program activities launched by this organization which was supported by Americans for UNFPA -United Nations Population fund in Dang, Salyan, Pyuthan, Banke and Bardiya districts.
As an outcome, RWDC’s chairperson Aasmani Chaudhary was awarded with “International Award for Health and Dignity” by Americans for UNFPA in America in New York in 2008.
Throughout the last 26 years of humanitarian journey, the RWDC under the charismatic leadership of Aasmani Chaudharuy has had the great opportunity to work in cooperation with government as well as various bilateral, multilateral donor agencies, INGOs like World Education, Heifer International Nepal, United Nation Population Fund (UNFPA), DANIDA, ADB, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), European Union Commission, Planet Enfante, Integrated Development Environment (IDE) Nepal, Resource Identification Management Society Nepal (RIMS-Nepal), Rupantaran, RMDC Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Ltd, Centre for Research and Environment, Health and Population Activities (CREHPA), PACT Nepal, Micro Credit Project for Women (MCPW), Community Self-Reliance Centre (CSRC), Enhancing Access to Financial Services (EAFAS), Heifer International, Nepal Nepal Rastra Bank, International Foundation for Electoral System (IFES), UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), United Nation Development Fund (UNDP), Habitat for Humanity Nepal, USAID, fhi360, Bank of Kathmandu, FMDB Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha and with various local NGOs of Rolpa, Dang Salyan, Pyuthan, Bardiya and Banke districts.
Vision
“Create a Self-reliant and empowered society”
Mission
To facilitate accessibility and opportunities of education, health, economic development and social security for marginalized and disadvantaged communities especially women and children by promoting governance, risk management and compliance (GRC).
Goal
- Improve the living standard of the destitute and disadvantaged class of women and children by designing various programs on education, health and income generation.
- Create awareness and behavioral change among the disadvantaged and backward communities regarding their rights by enhancing their capacities through a series of training.
- Awareness and risk mitigation in response to adverse effects of climate change through skill-building training.
- Improve institutional governance for effective public service delivery by the public institution.
What we do?
RWDC is a community based organization in the mid western regions of Nepal which was established in 1993 under the charismatic leadership and pioneering. RWDC’s main area of work is a crusade for;
- Advocacy for social justice,
- Reproductive health
- Land rights,
- Women empowerment,
- Gender-equality
- Literacy,
- Child Education
- Rehabilitation,
- Climate change
- Good governance,
- Income Generation
- Human Rights
Where we work
RWDC works in the mid western development region in Dang, Salyan, Rolpa, Pyuthan, Banke and Bardia districts among the marginalized groups of rural women, poor farmers through development projects and microfinance. More than 40,000 rural women of 14000 saving groups are involved with the RWDC initiated microfinance micro-loan program through Atma Nirbhar Laghubitta Bitta Limited.
Project Activities
Strengthening Smallholder Farmers Organization for Livestock Value (SLVC-II)
Capitalizing and building further synergy on the success of the first SLVC-I Project implemented by Rural Women Development Center (RWDC) from March 2012 to June 2016, the SLVC-II came into existence.
The SLVC-II Project duration has been set for April 2018 to March 2021 and is funded by Heifer International Nepal. The project is being implemented by RWDC in Dang district along with additional districts -Pyutan and Salyan.
The main goal of SLVC-II is to increase the annual household average income by 72% (NPR 557,000) by the end of the project year.
The SLVC-II stresses on increasing the income and entrepreneurship of smallholder goat producers especially women by linking them directly to the cooperatives to buyers and to consumers. The project on the other hand guides the cooperatives to attain their sustainability and internal good governance.
Civil Society Mutual Accountability Project (CS: MAP Project)
Mutual Accountability: Local Initiative in Dang District is being implemented by Rural Women Development Center –RWDC (GraminMahilaUthan Kendra) for a project period ranging from March 2017 to December 2020 in Dang district. The project is funded by USAID/fhi360.
The goal of this project is to recreate the vibrancy of civil society in the district by ensuring civic participation in policy/legal reforms, promote civic engagement with government entities and strengthen their capacity to carry out public policy advocacy and oversight for effective public service delivery and public resource use.
Considering issues, problems and the need to continue the interventions briefly discussed above RWDC applied two-pronged approach to work on these issues in Dang district. One approach wasto engage, sensitize and empower stakeholders at ward/municipality level and the other approach was to engage, sensitize and empower stakeholders at the district level.
Formation of Common Assembly at ward level and Sajhedari Manch at municipality level developed as loose forums to create platforms (opportunities) for citizens and government/service providers to discuss issues on public service delivery and public resource use for a better government local government. Other methods of sensitizing and empowering stakeholders at local level included capacity building of Common Assembly members on public service oversight, advocacy including budget advocacy, local level planning process and use of information technology (Sajha Sabha Apps) for public service oversight and monitoring.
CS:MAP’s other approach was to engage, sensitize and empower stakeholders at district level for strengthening collaboration between/among civil society organizations including media for reinforcing their civic space in democratic governance.
RWDC Contact Address
Gramin Mahila Utthan Kendra, (Rural Women Development Center-RWDC)
Central office-Dang Ghorahi-15, Tharugaun Dang,
Lumbini, Nepal
Email: rwdcnepal17@gmail.com
info@rwdc.org.np
Phone No:-00977-082-560837/560489
Mobile no-9857830383
URL: www.rwdc.org.np