LOCAL INSTITUTIONS AND PEOPLE"S PARTICIPATION IN RURAL PUBLIC WORKS IN NEPAL

So concludes this study of the dynamics underlying three successful cases of local participation in public works projects in Nepal. Nepal"s sociopolitical history is traced from its unification under the Saha kings in 1769 to the emergence in 1951 of a constitutional form of government under which local people were promised active participation in the country"s development. Government efforts to make that promise a reality are detailed. Three rural public works projects undertaken jointly by the government and local people are then analyzed: construction of the Banglung suspension bridge and of the Illam-Charali trunk road, and efforts of the National Development Service to promote infrastructure development by mobilizing local labor and resources. Although implementation of all three projects differed on the organizational level, all made use of ad hoc committees besides those established by statute (local and district Panchayats), thus allowing a flexibility that encouraged local people to select locally suitable alternatives. Local ability to express local need also abetted the success of these projects, as was strikingly shown in the Illam-Charali road project, in which local leaders elicited and obtained support for the project from the King of Nepal himself. The three projects also showed that local participation is limited by local technological capability (the simpler the technology employed, the greater the participation), so that government introduction of a new technology into an area requires systematic preparation. The projects also showed, however, that participation increased with the degree of local technological expertise. Finally, all three projects used tremendous amounts of local materials and labor -- all of it freely given, generally in accordance with local ability to make project decisions and the feeling that the resources would be used to match local needs. The vast need for infrastructure in Nepal and the country"s current financial condition clearly show the importance of such extensive contributions. Appendices include a 35-item bibliography (1952-79).