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| Register_me | Posted
on 26-Mar-03 10:33 PM
Nepal Today the situation in Nepal is more hopeful than it has been in over a year. Just last week, representatives of the Maoist rebel group and the Government agreed to a Code of Conduct, a peaceful foundation for future negotiations towards a longer-term political settlement to the conflict. A few months ago, however, the future of Nepal appeared bleaker. A Maoist insurgency practiced unspeakable brutality, intimidation and murder, resulting in over 7,000 deaths since it began in 1996. The insurgents control a large share of the countryside, and have benefited from popular outrage over years of government corruption and denial of service to the people. The destructive effects of the Maoist insurgency, however, should not distract attention from the gains Nepal has made over the past fifty years. It has transformed itself from an isolated medieval kingdom to a constitutional monarchy. Child mortality and fertility rates have significantly decreased. Literacy and food security have improved. Yet these development gains are unevenly distributed. Poor governance and corruption, the forbidding mountainous terrain and lack of basic infrastructure, like roads, have led to wide disparities across regions and ethnic groups and between rural and urban populations. These inequities provided a fertile ground for the insurgency. Our greatest challenge is to meet the immediate needs of those communities most affected by the conflict, former combatants and victims of torture, without losing sight of the Government's needs through successive stages in the peace process. USAID plays an important part in the USG's larger strategy in Nepal. Our emphasis is on health, economic security and governance reform to combat the poverty and disenfranchisement that facilitated the six- year insurgency. Our task is to expand opportunities for employment and generate growth in the private, trade, agriculture, and energy sectors. We will reinforce that work with efforts to improve public sector management to deter corruption and strengthen the rule of law. Regards, America Nepal Update, Nepal USA Network. |