A major achievement of the Mugu Community Transformation project which ended in December 2019 was the construction of a 329m-long irrigation canal. Our partner KCDC gave USD 1,730 to build the concrete canal. Community people contributed USD 10,300 equivalent of labour. A reliable source of water to create well-watered land has been a blessing to 50 families who rely mostly on their harvest to feed the family.

 

The 329m canal is for the 50 households of Daura village of Mugu. In the past their food security only lasted for six months. “We had very little harvest earlier because of poor water supply. But now our harvest is good all through the year because of the new canal. We are also able to produce off-season vegetables” shares one local resident.  Their previous canal was made of mud, so the water never reached the fields at the far end.  But now this problem and source of conflict has been solved: another resident shares, “We used to have quarrels in the village because of poor water supply. This canal has ended the quarrels. Now every field has enough water.” 

Our partner KCDC describe themselves as a process-based development organisation: “We encourage community participation from the early stages of our projects. This ensures capacity-building of the community too. We don’t believe in giving things ready-made to the community.” This has been appreciated by the local community: “We tend to help each other more when we work together as a team. We learn from each other’s problems.”

 

This one canal has greatly increased food security, reduced local conflicts, helped the community to work together and learn from each other and may even reduce the need for migration out of this remote district. Our Greener Fields video features this canal, available from https://www.umn.org.np/videos/868