Quality Public Services in Nepal

The civil war and struggle for democracy in Nepal have severely reduced the ability of the government to provide public services. Budgets are continuously reduced and services do not meet peoples’ basic needs. There are few municipal or local government services.

Public sector workers have no trade union rights in Nepal, the government has a bill on Freedom of Association but it has been before parliament for some time and there is no sign that it will be passed in the near future. The workers face privatisation and public sector restructuring, very low wages, poor conditions and in the rural areas their life is in constant danger.

None of this deters the unions from struggling for better public services. The energy and water unions have a strategy for opposing privatisation. Energy privatisation has been postponed. The water unions prepared an alternative to privatising Kathmandu water and when negotiations with government failed they began on-going demonstrations. Several people were imprisoned and one union leader had his leg broken in three places.

The Nepal Civil Service Employees Association, a PSI affiliate, is now preparing a questionnaire  to survey members and the general public on their public service needs and how these services should be delivered. "We will use the results to show the government what the public thinks about the current situation and what they want done about it”, explained the President Thani Bhawani Prasad "We will use the results to negotiate changes and get the government to provide more funds for services; public services can and must improve and the union will play a major role in this.”

This is in a country where social dialogue is not a major government priority. "They sometimes discuss things with us but they don’t like to. The main problem is that there is no clear government policy. One of the only ways to get them to talk with us is to put pressure on them. We go on strike or have a demonstration, lots of groups demonstrate and the government chooses who they want to talk to. The weapon of strike helps the government choose us.”

The President stated that "the concept of the Quality Public Service campaign has assisted us to discuss these issues and raise them with government. The communities see that we are also taking up their issues. The Swedish LO-TCO-funded project has increased our capacity to think strategically, we have learnt survey techniques and we have increased our membership. Now we are using these skills to get information to lobby the government with. PSI materials have helped us a lot to prepare arguments and alternatives.”