Selection of Renewable Energy for Rural Area (RERA) Partner Municipalities in Province 1

Duration: December 2017 - March 2018
Project Location: Bhojpur, Dhankuta, Ilam, Jhapa, Khotang, Morang, Okhaldunga, Panchthar, Sankhuwasabha, Solokhumbu, Sunsari, Taplejung, Terathum, Udayapur
Partners: AEPC
Focal Person: Mr. Badri Nath Baral
Status: Completed

The Government of Nepal has been promoting the Renewable Energy (RE) sector through the Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC) and its development partners.  Nepal is endowed with good sources of RE potential, of which hydropower, solar energy and various forms of biomass play a major role. There has been a steady growth in access to RE in Nepal, however, it is still not equitably distributed across the country. According to the National Rural and Renewable Energy Programme (NRREP), 2012, the contributing factors for unequitable distribution are high development costs, low incomes, low levels of awareness, and low institutional capacity at the local level. At present, Nepal is undergoing federal restructuring along with the provision of Federal, Provincial and Local governments. However, the roles and coordination among these three different levels of government are yet to be detailed. The Constitution states that central, provincial and local levels can enact laws, prepare annual budgets, take decisions, prepare and implement policies and plans within their own area of authority. These lays potential ground for detail energy plan and Renewable Energy Technologies (RETs) scale-up. Thus, capacity building of key stakeholders such as elected local level governments (municipalities) representatives, local financial institutions, private sector and civil society for sustainable delivery models of energy products and services is crucial. Hence, the Renewable Energy for Rural Areas (RERA) project of GIZ is supporting AEPC to develop RETs capacity development strategy, including methodology, analysis and the development of orientation measures on RETs to build capacity of elected representatives, municipality staff and community organizations. This capacity development strategy will assist in achieving RERA’s objective of ensuring an effective and efficient service delivery of decentralized RE through improved outreach and enhanced local cooperation within a federal context of Nepal, leading to modern energy access for all.

In this context, GIZ/RERA has awarded this assignment to Winrock International to help RERA select partner municipalities in Province 1, develop a one day RETs orientation package and conduct orientation programs in six such selected municipalities.

Objective and Scope of the assignment:

The overall objective of the assignment is to identify potential partner municipalities of the RERA program and conduct a one-day orientation program to representatives of the selected partner municipalities to make them aware about alternative energy and RETs potential in each of the municipality.