Action research serves as (a) learning, (b) contextualizing process consultancy and capacity growth, and (c) directly helping the community members meet their development needs. It embraces empowerment through community mobilization plus capacitating them to plan, self monitor and evaluate (PME) their own small scale self help development projects based on self-reliance. At its strongest, it (the PME) also serves as social auditing thus embracing the community members in a participative process.

Community analysis, mobilization and empowerment (based on right based approach and advocacy) characterize SN's action research in the field. Nepal being a poor country - is inhabited by many poor communities - also warrants relief and services from development institutions. Hence, SN strives to provide these services together with various government, non-government and donor partners. As SN pursues action research, the valuable experiences and knowledge, generated through micro level projects, finds expression in shaping policy, building capacity and public education at the wider macro level.

In the past 15 years, SN has been effective in building capacity of NGOs and CBOs. It has also been successful in ushering a process of NGO coalitions in Nepal in order to create a niche and an enabling environment for NGOs and civic society in Nepal. The formative and fermenting era of early 1990s, witnessed SN contributing towards promoting pluralistic democracy strengthening, effective governance, voter and civic education and polls monitoring. SN also developed expertise in large scale opinion polling, market research and survey research.

SN is active in Kavre, Okhaldunga, Rasuwa, Makwanpur, Ramechaap and Dhading. SN intends to extend to at least 10 districts and remote communities in the central region by 2010.

SACID

Sustainable Area Based Community and Institutional Development Initiatives (SACID) is an Action Research Programme of SEARCH, which is being implemented in remote areas of Okhaldhunga, Kavrepalanchowk and Rasuwa districts of Nepal. SACID has completed five years of project implementation. The main aim of the Project is to contribute towards poverty reduction of a critical mass of households in each district through developing and strengthening federation of self-help groups (SHGs).

The first phase of the Project was implemented as an innovation phase from 2000 to 2002. Second phase, is implemented since 2003, as a consolidation and expansion phase for a period of 3 years. SACID will continue for another 2-3 years for the strengthening of SHGs and Federated SHGs under Sustainability phase. At present, SHGs are consolidating into Federated SHGs (FS). Altogether, 26 SHGs have been organized into 6 Federated Organizations (FS) in Okhaldhunga and Rasuwa district.

SACID is successfully supporting sustainable livelihood of the people through fulfillment of basic minimum needs (BMNs) as basic services. The basic needs of the SHGs are organizational development, development of able leaders and managers within the groups, skill promotion and enhancements for resource generation and mobilization, capacitate in community analysis, participatory planning, small-scale community level projects, project implementation, establishment of self-monitoring and self-evaluation systems within the groups etc. Move towards eventual sustainability, autonomy, and civic engagements of SHGs and SHG Federations are the end goals of SACID.

Movement for Self Help Development (MSD) for Sustainable Livelihood

Movement for Self Help Development (MSD) for Sustainable Livelihood is an Action Research programme of SEARCH focusing at the hamlet level with severe poverty pockets, as an entry point for intervention.

MSD-Dhading

Sustainable Livelihood through Movement for Self-Help Development is an action research programme of SEARCH with a grants support of Australian Government (AusAID). The overall goal of the project is to contribute towards sustainable means of livelihood for a sizeable number of rural poor by strengthening the self-help capacity and institutional building while complementing the local and national development plan. Purpose of the SL-MSD is to ensure livelihood support of rural poor by themselves with the support of the project. Cooperation with the District and local government agencies and market opportunities are also crucial and important preconditions for success of SL-MSD. The SL-MSD is being implemented since 2004 and it is currently at its first phase of Social Mobilization. This will end in June 2005. The second phase called the Expansion and Consolidation phase will start from July 2005 and will end in December 2006.

The themes will encompass social empowerment, economic development, livelihood support and self-help institution building. Move towards eventual sustainability, autonomy, and civic engagements of SHGs and SHG Federations are the end goals of MSD.

Eventually, the question of sustainability, autonomy and civic engagement with wider state, market, other civic society organizations (including social and civic relations) and member households will remain the key focus and end goal of SL-MSD. This will be based on an action-reflection-improvement praxis based on participatory self-monitoring and impact evaluation (SME/PME).

MSD(Chitlang)

MSD is a rural community development initiative of SEARCH Nepal. It is being implemented in and around the areas of Chandragiri hills since 1997 as a Pilot project.The ultimate goal of the MSD initiative is to contribute towards Sustainable Livelihood of a sizeable number of rural communities in 7-8 hill districts of the Central Region surrounding the Kathmandu valley. The Project targets the poor and backward communities including women, children and the ethnic minorities and socially disadvantaged Dalits.