Академический Документы
Профессиональный Документы
Культура Документы
250
200
150
101 97
85 84 86 82
100 73 70
58 56 64 60 61 58
52 48
50
0
2011-12 2012-13 2011-12 2012-13 2011-12 2012-13 2011-12 2012-13
Due to these persistent efforts there has been increase in and these remained unused for a long time and, as a result,
community awareness, decrease in provider absenteeism, the allocation was substantially reduced.
increase in health services usage, and increase in demand The setting up of village level VHSNC has increased the
of contraceptives, said Danish Meeraj, theme coordinator, utilisation of untied fund and improved the quality of
BVHA. BVHA works in Supaul and Kishanganj. An additional spending. The decision to spend untied funds is taken
Primary Health Centre (PHC) was opened in Kishanganj on mutually by the VHSNC members during monthly meetings.
the demand of the VHSNC. Mostly funds were used for building structures for
The VHSNCs were trained to monitor the performance of enhancing health status of villagers. A large chunk of
ICDS and PDS. In the past, there were instances when the money in Sitamarhi was spent on building or repairing
dealer would take money but not give enough ration. But roads and structures to improve sanitation, said Rambinay
that has changed. We monitor the quantity and quality of Singh, documentation and evaluation coordinator at
ration given out by ICDS and PDS. If there is any problem, BGVP. The Parishad works in Sitamarhi and in some parts
we give a warning. If they still dont listen, then we take of Supaul. However, activities that require innovation still
action, Jyoti Singh, ward member of village Phulwari in show significant underutilisation of funds.
Kishanganj. In case of discrepancy, the VHSNCs through the Community mobilisation in the villages of Sitamarhi,
panchayat can get the license of the PDS dealer revoked. Kishanganj and Supaul are beginning to show results.
The setting up of village level VHSNCs has led to more During the three years of GPAF project, consistent change
structured collaboration between health and nutrition has been observed due to actions of the community.
initiatives at the community level. Since the VHSNC is the The village level VHSNCs, backed by community based
first village level body focusing on health and nutrition, the monitoring, have been instrumental in giving adequate
members are working on highlighting bottlenecks related thrust to streamlining social sector services as well as
to ICDS and PDS and advocating for universal and equitable increased ownership and demand for services at the
access to public services. For instance, the Janani Suraksha village level. People feel that VHSNCs have helped them
Yojana (JSY) in Bihar mandates that nutritional supplement gain a foothold on their health and nutrition rights and they
can only be given to eight pregnant women in the village. are positive of continuing it beyond the project period. The
This deprives many others of the benefits and the families, village level VHSNC has ensured that the panchayat is in
who are left out, feel discriminated by health workers tune with the demands and requirements of the community.
and refuse to participate in health programmes. Now, the Apart from VHSNC members, Barefoot Auditors (BFA) are the
VHSNC members are advocating for provision of nutritional other volunteers leading this change. The Barefoot Auditors,
supplements for all pregnant women in the village. appointed as frontline workers under the GPAF project, have
The village level VHSNC meets once every month to discuss made it easier for the public health workers Auxiliary Nurse
health, sanitation and nutrition issues in the villages. During Midwives (ANM), Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA)
the meetings, the committee members draw roadmaps to and Anganwadi Workers (AWW) to perform their duties
address community needs as well as plan the utilisation of by uniting and educating community members on issues
untied funds provided by the panchayat to the committee. related to health and nutrition. The Barefoot Auditors havent
The villagers were unaware of the untied funds or its utility restricted themselves to health alone; they are actively
3
The village level VHSNC
meets once every month to
discuss health, sanitation
and nutrition issues in
the villages. During the
meetings, the committee
members draw roadmaps to
address community needs as
well as plan the utilisation
of untied funds provided
by the panchayat to the
committee
Village- level VHSNC members at Sitamarhi, Bihar (with the community based monitoring tool in the backdrop)
Oxfam India, 4th and 5th Floor, Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra,
1, Copernicus Marg, New Delhi 110001
Tel: +91 (0) 11 4653 8000 www.oxfamindia.org
Oxfam India is a member of a global confederation of 17 Oxfams and is registered as a company
under section 25 of4the Indian Company Law.