Nepal sets the pace for sustainable energy

Nepal makes use of their natural resources with mico-hydropower systems. (Photocredit: practicalaction.org)

Nepal, a landlocked country tucked tightly between China and India, has historically been an underdog in the game of development. But in the race to connect rural communities with electricity, Nepal has surged ahead of the pack. The country’s recent Micro-Hydropower Program (MHP) connected 130,000 Nepalese with sustainable energy.

Many argue that it is a blaring oversight that the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) did not include a specific target for energy. According to a recent report released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the fact that 1.2 billion people still live without basic electricity makes it far more difficult for them to progress in other MDG areas like poverty, health, and education.

Madhu Acharya, the UN’s ambassador to Nepal told MediaGlobal, “We [Nepal] are a country of 27 million people. We look small because we are between the two giants but we have many people and we are landlocked so the challenge of providing energy and resources is a great one.”

Despite the MDGs energy omission, Nepal has made massive headway in ensuring that its rural population be connected with adequate supplies of sustainable energy.

Launched in 1996, The National Micro-Hydropower Program successfully utilized naturally flowing water bodies to create energy that was accessible and affordable to Nepal’s poor rural communities.

Acharya stated, “It is vital for countries like ours to make use of the resources they have rather than relying on outside aid. We have access to many sources of running water so it made sense to make use of them for energy.”

Effective energy initiatives resulted from creating focused efforts in overall capacity building. Capacity building refers to a wide range of ideas centered around strengthening projects from the inside out. In Nepal’s case, it meant making the micro-hydropower systems sustainable via community engagement, which gave the local people, rather than outside forces, ownership over the energy project.

Francesca Perucci, chief of the UN’s Statistical Planning and Development Division, told MediaGlobal, “The key to successful capacity building is country ownership. Both the governments and the local people must set the priorities of the country so that donors can provide support rather than setting their own overlapping agendas and programs.”

A UNDP report released last week, Capacity Development For Scaling up Decentralized Energy Access Programmes, showed what capacity building can do for countries like Nepal. In this case study, capacity building entailed efforts of monitoring and transparency, up-front long-term investment, and community mobilization.

Nepal serves as an example for developing countries struggling with energy issues. Achayra added, “Success must come from within for it to be sustainable. When communities are trained to own and operate systems like our micro-hydropower system, the project becomes sustainable, affordable, and accessible to rural populations.”

From health initiatives to agricultural and educational programs, energy is a vital component to growth in multiple sectors. But success does not necessarily stream from massive financial aid and outside resources. Nepal serves as a pivotal example of a country that gave light to millions of people living in darkness using communication and flowing water. When countries take control of their own resources and initiatives, sustainable success is soon to follow.