सूचक

Nepal's legal and institutional framework provides multiple mechanisms for grievance redress at all levels:

• The Legal Aid Act (1997) established a legal aid fund and Legal Aid Committee at central and district levels, responsible for providing legal aid services to the poor, to women, children, the disabled, and other marginalised groups.

• At the community level, public hearings and public auditing are mandatory provisions for Forest User Groups (FUGs) to improve and maintain governance.

• Division Forest Offices (DFOs) have the power to adjudicate and settle cases under the Forests Act (2019), while the Vice Chairpersons of local governments also have authority to settle disputes.

• Forest sector policies, laws, regulations and guidelines, including the Forest Policy (2019), Forestry Sector Strategy (2016-2025), Forests Act (2019) and Forest Regulation (2022), encourage citizens to report forest governance-related grievances to the concerned authority and instruct the authority to redress them promptly and effectively.

• Nepal's Constitution (2015) guarantees access to justice and the right to a fair trial to all citizens. Powers relating to justice can be exercised by courts and other judicial bodies in accordance with the Constitution, other statutes, laws and regulations. The courts constitute three levels: the Supreme Court; Appellate courts; and District courts and other courts/bodies. Specialized courts or tribunals may be constituted for the purpose of hearing special types of cases.

• The Good Governance (Management and Operation) Act (2008) and its Regulations (2009), and Right to Information Act (2007) are in place for maintaining good governance and grievance handling in government offices. The Good Governance Act requires GRMs to be accessible to all citizens or groups who are affected by programs or projects under government agency implementation.

• As per section 46 of the Local Government Operation Act (2017), each local government has formed a three-member judicial committee coordinated by its Vice-Chairperson/Deputy Mayor to settle disputes or complaints in their respective jurisdictions.

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Nepal's general public grievance handling systems apply to REDD+-related matters and are complemented by REDD+-specific arrangements:

• At the national level, Nepal's general public grievance handling systems apply to REDD+-related matters. These include the Hello Sarkar grievance mechanism and the National Vigilance Centre, which provide channels for citizens to submit complaints related to governance, misuse of authority and service delivery across government sectors, including forestry and environment-related institutions.
• In line with national administrative requirements, government offices maintain citizen charters and designated grievance-handling officials, providing an institutional basis for receiving and processing complaints. These arrangements apply to institutions involved in REDD+ implementation, including the Ministry of Forests and Environment and its subordinate agencies.
• The REDD+ Safeguards Information System (SIS) also includes an online feedback submission function.
• At the provincial and local levels, grievance handling related to forestry and REDD+ activities is supported through existing government grievance handling arrangements and forest-sector institutions, including Division Forest Offices (DFOs) and local governments. In practice, this includes complaint registers/boxes maintained at offices, submission of complaints through local government judicial committees, and use of online or written feedback mechanisms operated by government institutions such as MoFE and the REDD Implementation Centre.
• The National REDD+ Strategy (NRS, 2018 and 2025) recognises the need for functional and accessible GRMs as part of REDD+ safeguards implementation. It requires the establishment and operation of GRMs at national, provincial and local levels to address grievances related to REDD+ activities and safeguard commitments, and emphasises strengthening community-level access to grievance redress.
• The 2024 NRS review acknowledges gaps and challenges, including limited awareness of REDD+ safeguards and inconsistent understanding of grievance and FPIC procedures among Indigenous Peoples, local communities and government officials, reinforcing the need for strengthened grievance redress processes and multi-stakeholder monitoring.

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REDD+-specific Grievance Redress Mechanisms (GRMs) are being applied and strengthened at Emission Reduction (ER) program level:

• Under the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) ER Program, the REDD Implementation Centre conducted a study to design a feedback and grievance redress mechanism (FGRM) in 2015. The FGRM was designed to complement existing formal and customary grievance mechanisms and to address grievances related to forest governance, access to resources, benefit sharing and REDD+ implementation. The FGRM framework is documented in the FCPF ER Program Document and Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF), which sets out procedures for receipt, recording, resolution and escalation of grievances at community, district and national levels.
• For the LEAF ER Program, REDD+-specific grievance handling builds on Nepal's national existing GRM framework and safeguards framework. Grievance redress is operationalised through existing grievance channels, including by CFUGs, DFOs, provincial REDD desks and the REDD Implementation Centre.
• As part of LEAF ER Program preparation and implementation, a review of existing GRMs was undertaken in 2025. This review informed development of a National REDD+ GRM Guideline and capacity-building activities in 2025-2026, aimed at strengthening understanding and operationalisation of grievance procedures in Bagmati, Gandaki and Lumbini provinces.
• Monitoring and consolidation of grievance-related information are supported through the Safeguards Information System (SIS), which aggregates GRM information and provides an additional channel for stakeholder feedback.

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