One-Stop Service Delivery Offers Efficient and Accessible Services to Local Communities

December 4, 2024

Pushpa Badi is the first elected mayor from the marginalized Badi community. He has set an example by establishing One-Stop Service Delivery (OSSD) center in Chaurjahari Municipality, Rukum (West) becoming the first local government to do so in the Karnali province. The integrated service delivery approach has eased dillydallying and reduced corruption. In an interview with the UNDP, he has shared insights about his life, personal struggles and what it means to be the first mayor elected from the Badi community. He has also explained in length how service delivery has improved in remote areas after the implementation of the OSSD centre. Excerpt:

Tell us about the community you represent and your current position.

I belong to the Badi community. If you read our history, you will know that we were traditionally involved in fishing, making musical instruments like maadal (a two-faced hand drum used in Nepali music), crafting smoking pipes, and engaging in other recreational activities such as singing and dancing. We survived on seasonal grains given by the ‘so-called high-caste people’ as their wages. Only 50 percent of the Badis have built houses. The rest of us have no land. Recently, many Badis have started building their homes, but they still lack land for farming. There is a widespread belief that farming by Badis brings bad luck and that their crops will not yield fruit.

With a total population of 38,603 people, Badis are ranked at the bottom of the Dalit hierarchy. We are economically disadvantaged and socially excluded, resulting in almost no representation in politics. So far, only two Badi women have served as members of parliament: Uma Devi Badi (in the previous provincial parliament in Sudurpaschim province) and Sushila Badi (currently in the provincial parliament) from the Lumbini province. Three local governments have appointed Badis to their executive committees, and a total of seven Dalits have been elected as mayors. After the country transitioned to a federal setup, I was given the opportunity to hold executive power representing one of the most marginalized communities. I am currently the only Badi holding an executive position.

As Nepal's first mayor elected from the Badi community, how do you see this achievement translating into tangible development benefits for marginalized and underserved communities?

The 2015 constitution has introduced some progressive agendas like proportional representation and inclusion. What I have now realized is that if the political parties sincerely respect the spirit of the Constitution, marginalized people can hold executive positions. The need of the hour is for them to take a lead for change. If this is done, the representation of all castes, religions, and communities in all three tiers of the government is possible. Their inclusion ensures wider acceptance of the Constitution and delivers better results because only those who faced discrimination can feel the urgency to act on certain unattended issues. I’m an example of this change.

The physical presence of a person from the marginalized community with constitutional rights in executive positions means a lot for these people who are left behind. What I believe now is that the vision of these communities can be realized when a person from the same community holds executive roles. Only those who faced discrimination can feel the urgency to act on certain unattended issues. Having received this historic opportunity to hold executive power representing one of the most marginalized communities, I am working hard on my vision to uplift the living standards of the community I represent.

a group of people sitting at a table — Mayor Pushpa Badi shares his insights on integrated service delivery. ©UNDPNepal

What difference have you made in Chaurjhari since becoming the mayor?

Born into a Badi family, I was once an ordinary citizen. Before being elected mayor, I worked as a social activist. Now, I have implemented several initiatives with a long-term impact on society. For example, the municipality began distributing free uniforms and textbooks to all primary-level students. I introduced this initiative because I remembered how we were deprived of an education simply because we didn't have school uniforms, textbooks, or copies.

In the past, many heart patients and new mothers died on their way to the hospital due to lack of timely treatment. To prevent these tragic deaths, we introduced a free ambulance service. Our health insurance scheme has expanded access to healthcare, benefiting the poor, Dalit, and marginalized communities the most. Under this scheme, a family classified as "helpless" can access healthcare by depositing just Rs. 3,500. We also introduced city buses to provide better transportation access.

The "One House, One Tap" campaign has ensured drinking water for many. At least 85% of people now have access to drinking water, and two major drinking water projects, worth millions of rupees, will be completed by the end of this fiscal year. Once these projects are operational, every household will have reliable drinking water.

I recall that many of us used to rely on diyalo (firewood from pine trees) for light due to the lack of electricity, and many couldn't afford kerosene. Now, 85% of households have electricity. We have also ensured road access to all ward offices and settlements. All 14 wards now have their own health offices, and by the end of this fiscal year, every ward will have their one dedicated building.

It is well-known that local governments often face a gap between community needs and the resources available to meet them. How are you and Chaurjahari Municipality addressing and overcoming this challenge?

That’s true. Even though we have limited resources, people have high expectations from local governments. We are addressing their basic needs, but not all their expectations, due to inadequate resources. There is a need for more coordination among the federal, provincial, and local governments.

As the government closest to the people, we also need to be accountable. Our first priority is education, with 30 percent of the total budget allocated to it, followed by health and drinking water. To improve the quality of education, we are conducting municipal-level examinations for grades 3, 5, and 8. Teachers from other schools are assigned to conduct these examinations to prevent irregularities. The municipality has also mobilized 118 sports teachers, which has further enhanced education quality.

We have prioritized infrastructure development in implementing the budget, with agriculture being the second largest area of investment. Our understanding is that self-employment will ultimately support income generation. We have managed city buses, ambulances, health insurance, and drinking water to meet the people’s immediate needs. As you mentioned earlier, resource constraints are a significant problem for us as well. We are unable to spend more than 100 million rupees per year on development works, with most of our budget allocated to recurrent expenses.

a group of women sitting at a table — Local women outside a One Stop Service Delivery centre in Karnali province ©UNDPNepal

To accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Nepal needs to attract more investment. How is Chaurjahari Municipality faring in terms of meeting the SDGs?

So far, we have been formulating our budget and annual programs with the mission to achieve the 17 SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals). As a result, we are focused on key SDG targets such as health, education, drinking water, employment, and nutrition. To create awareness and address harmful practices like ending child marriage and drug addiction, we have formed child clubs. Additionally, cash incentives are being provided for inter-caste marriages, aimed at ending racial discrimination. So far, two couples have received cash awards for inter-caste marriages.
By the end of this fiscal year, every household will have access to tap water, ensuring the availability of drinking water for all. Two drinking water projects—one in Jogineta with an investment of Rs. 6 million and another in Kotjahari with an investment of Rs. 370 million—are nearing completion. We have made good progress in the health sector, but it has been somewhat challenging to prevent child marriage and drug addiction. For this reason, awareness campaigns against these harmful traditions are ongoing.

For new mothers, the provincial government and the municipality have launched a nutrition program. Under this scheme, both babies and new mothers receive a "nutrition bag." Health professionals conduct periodic follow-ups, and pregnant women are given iron tablets. We also provide free ambulances for new mothers. Senior citizens, new mothers, and persons with disabilities receive discounted bus rides. The municipality operates its own hospital. Ensuring better coordination among local, provincial, and federal governments, we are confident that we can achieve the SDGs within the set deadline.

One of the recent successes of UNDP projects in Karnali Province has been the establishment of an efficient and accessible service delivery system in Chaurjhari. What inspired you? How did you make it possible?

I often visit government offices for both personal and official matters, but they aren't very people friendly. In my own office, I have seen many frustrated service seekers who, despite spending an entire day at government offices, return home without accomplishing their work. This urged me to brainstorm ways to improve the service experience. Around the same time, an employee from UNDP Mr Tek Rana consulted with us on how service delivery could be integrated at the local level. He arranged an exposure visit for me and the executive officer to ShuklaGandaki Municiplaity in Gandaki province as part of the UNDP’s European Union Support to Inclusive Federalism (EUSIF) project. There we observed the manual implementation of the integrated service whereby files were classified and forwarded to the concerned departments –an improvement over the traditional working style.

I asked UNDP for support in creating a similar system that would run digitally and be sustainable enough to run for years. UNDP agreed to collaborate and provided us Rs 1.2 million (equivalent to USD 8955). The assistance was used to purchase a server and seek permission from the Ministry of Home Affairs to connect all services provided by the municipality into an integrated system. We now have our own server with data storage, and our system works even if there is no power. Since the implementation of the One-Stop Service Delivery, paying tax is just a click away, while those without internet access can directly come to the municipality with their service needs.

a group of people standing in front of a building — Mayor Badi in Suklagangaki municipality during an exposure visit ©UNDPNepal

If I arrive at the one stop service delivery center seeking a service, what exactly is the process for me to follow?

Under integrated service delivery, service seekers are supported by municipal officials who provide a checklist of requirements before registering their applications. As a service seeker, the first step is to collect a token. There are different types of tokens: one for meeting the mayor, the deputy mayor, or the chief executive officer, and another for official work. If you are seeking a service, the city police will direct you to the municipal officials, who will check and verify your documents are in order and register you in the system. Once you are in the system you can wait in the designated waiting area where you can check the progress of your work on the display monitor. It takes municipal officials 15 to 90 minutes to direct your file to the concerned department, thus benefiting service seekers significantly. Officials keep you updated on the progress and the expected time for completion. If your work cannot be completed immediately, you may be asked to return the next day.

Once the task is completed, the city police will guide you to a designated area where you can drop the token you received earlier into one of several boxes, ranging from "best" to "worst." Based on the tokens placed in the different boxes, we evaluate our performance daily. So far, we have received very positive feedback. However, one service seeker rated our service delivery as the worst. We investigated the reason behind this rating and discovered that the individual was upset because he was trying to collect sand and pebbles from a local stream, and the municipality had stopped sand mining. His frustration stemmed from not being able to conduct his sand mining business, and the rating was an expression of that anger. We take all complaints seriously.

a sign on the side of a building — Pigeonhole cabinets to collect users' feedback on service delivery. ©UNDPNepal

With the center now running successfully in your municipality, what lessons can other local governments in Karnali Province draw from Chaurjahari's experience?

First, good governance is our priority. Second, we aim to ensure that people are utilizing their time effectively. Our goal is to establish that government offices are accountable to the people. Before implementing the one-stop service delivery, bureaucrats often arrive at their desks at 10 AM and power off their computers by 4 PM, even if they have accomplished nothing. With the adoption of this system, staff cannot leave the office during office hours as files can come to their desk anytime. Also, in the recent months, people have been complementing us on the efficiency of our work. We could do more for the people we serve if we had more resources. Nevertheless, we are doing our best to satisfy service seekers despite limited resources. It would be rewarding if all government offices followed our example.

A few months ago, the Chief Minister of Karnali Province visited us. I asked him to allocate Rs 2,000,000 to each local government to implement the OSSD program. I think OSSD should be implemented by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and all ministries—including the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Defense, and Ministry of Supply. It should also be followed by the Chief Minister, the Ministries, and other key offices such as the District Administration Office and Land Revenue Offices. I am confident that if the OSSD is implemented across all government offices, 50 percent of corruption would decrease. However, many are not interested in implementing this program because it requires hard work.