of Integrated Resources Management of Water and Ecosystem in the Central Hills of Nepal Kaule, Chitwan District — Ichhakamana Rural Municipality | Duration: 2023–2026 (3 years) | 5 Rain Communities: Ghurkesh, Kaule, Chhapdada, Tobang, Hattibang

Since early 2024, Sapana Village Social Impact (SVSI) has implemented the IRMWE project across five Rain Communities in Ichhakamana Rural Municipality, working closely with local government, the Forest Division Office, and technical partners to strengthen watershed management, ecosystem services, agricultural livelihoods, and community technical capacity. The project was structured around five interconnected result areas — territorial planning, knowledge infrastructure, ecosystem restoration, income generation, and skills-building — with each phase of activity building on the last to move the intervention area from initial planning toward a self-sustaining, community-owned model of natural resource management. Over three years, this translated into tangible infrastructure and institutions now under community ownership: 39 polytunnels supporting climate-resilient vegetable production, a Knowledge Centre and 3D watershed model at the SVSI office, five upgraded multipurpose community nurseries, a Community Seed Bank conserving over 80 indigenous crop varieties, and the Koseli Ghar community marketplace. Alongside this infrastructure, more than 300 farmers were trained through over 30 distinct programs spanning pest and disease management, tunnel construction, orchard management, bio-fertilizer use, and business planning, supported by a cross-regional exposure visit to Kaski for lead farmers. With this core groundwork now in place, the project has shifted from establishment toward consolidation, with continued focus on strengthening market linkages, technical follow-up, and institutional coordination with local government and forest authorities to sustain these outcomes beyond the project period.

Note on data completeness: The source completion report itself flags several sections as incomplete or pending ("TBD"), including total beneficiaries reached, lessons learned, key challenges, and final conclusions/recommendations. These are marked below where relevant. One planned result area (Result 4 — water supply, rainwater harvesting, sanitation) was implemented by a different partner and is not covered by this report.

1. Territorial Planning & Governance

• Participatory 3D mapping conducted in Ghurkesh and Kaule, feeding into a jointly developed watershed and land-management action plan
• Mobilizer training on 3D community map-making (Jan 2024) 
• Community forest management training: 23 participants from 4 Community Forest User Groups (Hattibang, Tobang, Ghurkesh, Chhapdada)
• 3 zone-specific crop calendars (Lower, Mid, Upper elevation) developed and validated with 70 farmers across 10 settlements

2. Knowledge Infrastructure

• Community weather station established at Janapriya Secondary School, feeding real-time data every 5 minutes to inform farming decisions
• GIS/watershed record of the intervention area continuously maintained in Google Earth since project inception
• Knowledge Centre established at SVSI office, featuring a detailed 3D model map the Rigdi Watershed
• Permanent display board installed at Sapana Village Lodge showcasing SVSI's work

3. Ecosystem Restoration

• 4,200+ fodder, fruit, and citrus seedlings distributed across all 5 Rain Communities in partnership with the District Forest Office
• 1,587 orange and lemon seedlings distributed to 163 households
• 5 multipurpose community nurseries upgraded from bamboo to durable iron-pipe structures (nursery plastic covering has since suffered storm damage and needs rehabilitation)
• Bee-keeping introduced: 112 hives distributed project-wide; only 17 currently hold active colonies — flagged as an area needing stronger colony-management support
• 77 beneficiaries trained in bee-hive management; 26 additional in basic/refresher training
• Fire-line construction ahead of dry season: 59 community members mobilized across Tobang and Chhapdada
• World Environment Day reforestation campaign in Ghurkesh: 320 plants distributed, 24 participants

4. Agricultural Yields & Household Income

• All 39 planned polytunnels completed across 4 Rain Communities, now in active harvest (zucchini, turnip, coriander, beetroot, carrot)
• Irrigation materials (storage drums, watering cans) distributed to address water scarcity
• Koseli Ghar community marketplace formally inaugurated and handed over to the Ghurkesh Community Homestay Committee (30 Dec 2025)
• Community Seed Bank established, conserving 80+ indigenous seed varieties, including several critically endangered local crop varieties (a second seed bank site at Hapani, plus related policy-advocacy work, remains for the project's extension phase)
• Mushroom cultivation training: 46 farmers; follow-up farm exposure visit: 43 farmers
• Off-season tomato production training: 24 farmers
• Digital weighing machines distributed to 5 Rain Communities to eliminate exploitative trading
• Vegetable seed distribution: 47 households, 6 seed varieties
• JholMol organic-fertilizer training: 22 participants
• Coffee-plantation piloting: exposure visit (25 participants) plus local orientation (27 participants)
• Homestay/hospitality orientation and training: 49 participants across two sessions
• Marketing-opportunity training: 73 beneficiaries
• Business planning training: 78 participants
• Vermicompost pit construction materials distributed to 269 beneficiary households

5. Technical Capacity-Building

• 300+ farmers trained across pest/disease management, tunnel construction, orchard management, Trichoderma bio-fertilizer use, and nursery management
• Pest & disease identification training: 115 farmers
• Tunnel construction training: 60 participants
• Agro-ecology & Trichoderma training: 58 participants
• Nursery management & cost-benefit analysis: 57 participants
• Seed plantation & bund preparation training: 57 participants
• Cross-regional exposure visit to Kaski: 23 lead farmers (plus 8 staff/facilitators)
• 30+ distinct training and exposure programs delivered in total

6. Budget Utilization

• Approved budget: NPR 11,306,363 | Actual expenditure: NPR 10,375,188 | Overall utilization: 91.76%
• Human Resources: 99.56% utilized | Construction & Rehabilitation: 91.46% | Supplies: 93.17% | Administrative Costs: 89.55% | Trainings: 79.93% | Communication & Advocacy: 78.04%