Quarterly Report #11: Observing Nepal’s Peace Process and Constitution Drafting

The project received a budget of USD $1,638,419, with USAID contributing $999,953. The Carter Center's project activities included observing the implementation of the peace process and constitution drafting, conducting a limited observation of the Election Commission of Nepal's voter registration efforts, and issuing regular public and private reports on the Center's findings. The Carter Center conducted regional and district observations to track the peace process, including implementation of key political agreements, public engagement with the Constituent Assembly at the local level, and the effectiveness of local governance. Observer teams visited 74 out of 75 districts in Nepal, holding approximately 314 meetings with stakeholders at the national and local levels. The Carter Center also held training sessions for long-term observers to better inform their work in the field and share findings between Kathmandu headquarters and the observers. The Carter Center released three public reports and six private reports during the period of April 1 to June 30, 2012. The public reports included "The Carter Center's Information Sessions on the Election Commission of Nepal's Voter Registration with Photograph Program," "President Carter's Statement on Nepal," and "Land Commitments in Nepal's Peace Process: An Update on Implementation." The private reports included confidential situation updates and a private discussion paper on recent identity-based mobilization in Nepal. The Carter Center engaged with national and local political leaders to address political solutions, holding multiple meetings at the national and local levels with senior government and political party members, Nepali civil society, and members of the international community. Interlocutors expressed positive feedback about the Carter Center's reports and inquired about the Center's findings. They also expressed a desire for continued Carter Center support to the peace process. The Carter Center conducted regular briefing sessions with international stakeholders and coordinated closely with national stakeholders. Observers shared the national findings from the Carter Center's public reports in their deployment areas, providing factual information on various parts of Nepal's transition as requested by interested groups. The Carter Center also ensured gender and social inclusiveness in the project activities, beneficiaries, and staff, meeting with a diverse range of citizens and attempting to address the imbalance of men and women in meetings held at district headquarters level. The Carter Center received a formal invitation from the Election Commission of Nepal to observe the "Voter Register with Photograph Program." The Center conducted a limited observation of the program, deploying existing observation teams to report on voter registration in their deployment locations and hiring short-term expert consultants to assist in the design and implementation of the voter registration observer training and deployment.