Posted on June, 25 2014

 Kathmandu, Nepal – WWF Nepal signed a technical and economic cooperation grant agreement with the Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation (MoFSC) and the Ministry of Agricultural Development (MoAD) to initiate field implementation of Sustainable Land Management in Churia Region, the first Global Environment Facility (GEF) funded project in Nepal, following the accreditation of WWF Inc. as an implementing agency.

The total grant amount for first year is worth of Nrs. 7,201,475 and Nrs. 5,011,250 to MoFSC and MoAD respectively.

Under the grant, the project will be implemented in the four Churia districts namely Bara, Parsa Makwanpur and Rautahat where WWF Nepal will provide its technical and financial support to carry out conservation activities related to land degradation and climate change vulnerability.

“I would like to congratulate WWF Nepal for bringing in this project to implement in the sector we were yet to tap,” said Dr. Annapurna Nand Das, Joint secretary of the Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation. “With the field implementation of this project, I am hopeful that the drivers of Chure degradation can be controlled and livelihoods of people improved without compromising on the environmental factors,” Dr. Das added.

Likewise, WWF Nepal, also signed a grant agreement with Ministry of Land Reform and Management (MoLRM) to implement the central level activities of the project. Joint Secretary, Mr Rohit Kumar Bhattarai, signed the agreement on behalf of MoLRM. This agreement marks the first partnership of WWF with the Ministry of Land Reform and Management. 
   
Dr. Ghana Shyam Gurung, Conservation Program Director of WWF Nepal, stated that this grant will help in our efforts to conserve one of Nepal’s most fragile ecosystem, Churia, that covers about 13% of the total land area by using the experience and resources of all the partner organizations efficiently and effectively.

WWF received a three-year grant from the GEF to implement a project titled ‘Sustainable Land Management in the Churia Range, Nepal’ in February 2014.