ADB_book_18 April.qxp - Himalayan Document Centre - icimod

(NARDF 2004) for a period of 1 to 3 years startingfrom 2003 for individual projects (Table 10.1). Almostall the research projects are related to increasingagricultural products on a sustainable basis, whichrequires addressing many environmental issuesrelated to such things as the use of fertilizers andpesticides, water, and controlling soil erosion.Power Development FundThe Government established the Power DevelopmentFund for initial loan financing for promotinghydropower projects ranging from 1 to 50 MW. This isaimed at improving the rural population’s access toelectricity services. Initial funding of $35 million forselected projects will be provided by theInternational Development Association. Over time,resources from other international and domesticfinancial institutions will also be mobilized todevelop the aforementioned projects by the privatesector. The Fund operates under the directsupervision and management control of the PowerDevelopment Fund Board. It is administered by thePower Development Fund Administrator who isselected through competitive bidding. Currently theNepal Bangladesh Bank has been appointed as theAdministrator. For accessibility to the fund,investment projects must be environmentally soundand should have been scrutinized through an initialenvironmental examination (IEE) or environmentalimpact assessment (EIA) process as appropriate(PDFB 2005).Rural Water Supply and Sanitation FundThe Government of Nepal established the RuralWater Supply and Sanitation Fund in 1996 (B.S. 2052)as per Section 3(1) of the Development Board Act,1957 (B.S. 2013). The purpose is to develop ruraldrinking water and sanitation projects sustainably,reliably, and at reasonable cost by mobilizing andproviding financial, technical, and organizationalTable 10.1: Major Projects Funded by the National Agricultural Research and Development Fund (NARDF)SerialProject CostProjectDurationNumber(NRs)1 Improvement in post -harvest handling and ripening of banana s 3 years2,073,500(Jul '03–Jun '06)2 Development and dissemination of honey production technology 3 years17,21,550(Jul '03–Jun '06)3 Improvement in fruit set of brinjal and chillies 3 years 2,116,0004 Addressing food security through identification of farmer preferred crop 3 years2,858,800varieties and by strengthening local seed supply system s in the ruralcommunities of western Nepal(mid-Oct. '03–mid-Oct.'06)5 Study on the improvement of productivity and production of oilseed 3 years 2,146,800crops through integrated crop management practices in t he midwesternregion of Nepal6 Shiitake mushroom production promotion through entrepreneurship 2 years 1,845,750development among hill farmers7 Improvement of the vegetable marketing system through farmers 3 years1,595,463cooperative s in Chitwan an d Dhading districts(Jul '03–Jun '06)8 Identification and promotion of commercial agricultural opportunities for 3 years1,760,110farmers within the new Hile-Bhojpur road corridor(Jul '03–Jul '06)9 Understanding potential and critic al constraints to marketing goats in 1 year527,563the western hills of Nepal1 Nov. '03–31 Oct. '0410 Improving livelihoods of resource -poor farmers through on -farm seed 2.5 years 1,067,200priming in the western hills of Nepal11 Increase the income , nutrition, and food security of hill farmers through 2 years 827,885introducing the French bean in maize -based cropping system s12 Development of technologies for year -round production of cucumber in 3 years 1,864,150the hills of Nepal13 Development of nutrition management strategies to improve the 2 years and 10 months 1,973,837productivity of Pakhribas pig14 Promotion of wilt management technology on lentil, chickpea, and 3 years1,519,265pigeon pea in mid - and far-western Terai15 Exploring the formation of well -organized marketing cooperatives inJumla and Dailekh for promoting commercial production and exportmarketing of apples and oranges, respectively, including other highvalue agricultural productsSource: NARDF (2004)Jul '03–Jun '062 years 1,903,025Total 24,100,915146 Environment Assessment of Nepal : Emerging Issues and Challenges