Meet Bhum Bahadur Nepali of Nepal By Kiran Gautam

A resident of a mountainous district Pyuthan, Bhum Bahadur Nepali used to work as a contract laborer. However, in the last two years, Bhum, who comes from the lower Dalit, or untouchable, caste has lived a self-sustained life that he enjoys. With financial assistance of Rs. 14,000 (US$ 180) from the Poverty Alleviation Fund (PAF), he now earns Rs. 6,000 (US$ 80) a month, which is significant in a country where Gross National Income (GNI) per capita is US$ 340. The loan has helped him buy a sewing machine and an interlock machine to start the tailoring enterprise.Bhum Bahadur is one of many Dalits currently supported by Poverty Alleviation Fund-Nepal program. Poverty is rampant and deeply entrenched among the Dalits — 46% of who live below the poverty line, compared to the national average of 31%. They lag considerably behind in terms of incomes, assets and most human development indicators in comparison with the higher castes.

Established in 2003, PAF is the biggest national targeted program to reach out to households living below the poverty line. Sixty-six percent of beneficiaries’ households are very poor (unable to make their ends meet even for 3 months). Targeting, empowerment and social inclusion are the major guiding principles of PAF. Poor women, Dalits, and Janajatis (ethnic communities) are the main target groups, and after four years of implementation NPAF has organized 292,193 of these households into over 10,000 Community Organizations who are able to access project financing.

source:-worldbank.org/Kiran Gautam, Senior Executive Assistant, World Bank-Kathmandu