By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR: Ministry of Panchayat Raj (MoPR), Government of India, in close collaboration with Panchayati Raj & Drinking Water Department, Government of Odisha and State Institute for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj (SIRD&PR), Odisha, is organising the National Workshop on Localization of Sustainable Development Goals in Gram Panchayats through Adopting Thematic Approaches on Theme 3: Child Friendly Village and Theme 9: Women Friendly Village during 17–19 February, 2023 in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. The Chief Minister of Odisha, Shri Naveen Patnaik will inaugurate the three-day Workshop tomorrow.
Union Minister of Education & Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan and Union Minister of State for Panchayati Raj, Shri Kapil Moreshwar Patil will attend the inaugural session. Shri Pradip Kumar Amat, Minister of Panchayati Raj & Drinking Water, Forest & Environment, Information & Public Relations, Government of Odisha and Smt. Basanti Hembram, Minister of State (Ind. Charge) for Women & Child Development, Government of Odisha will also be present during the event.
The National Workshop will be inaugurated in the august presence of Shri Sunil Kumar, Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR), Dr. Chandra Shekhar Kumar, Additional Secretary, MoPR, Shri Alok Prem Nagar, Joint Secretary, MoPR, Shri Sushil Kumar Lohani, Principal Secretary, Panchayati Raj & Drinking Water Department, Odisha, Smt. Shubha Sarma, Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Department of Women & Child Development, Odisha, Ms. Aswathy S., Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Department of School and Mass Education, Odisha, Smt. Guha Poonam Tapas Kumar, CEO, ORMAS, Shri Surendra Kumar Meena, Director, SIRD&PR, Odisha and other distinguished dignitaries and local public representatives. A host of Senior Officers of the Government of India and State Governments, representatives of United Nations / international agencies and around 1400 elected representatives of Panchayati Raj Institutions from across the country are also expected to grace the occasion.
‘Odisha State Roadmap on SDG localisation in Panchayats’ – State Roadmap on LSDGs by State of Odisha will be released during the inaugural session of the National Workshop. A Vision Document on Theme 3 & Theme 9 (Child & Women Friendly Panchayat), besides a Coffee Table Book on “Empowering Rural Communities: Creating opportunities through Panchayati Raj Institutions” will be released. Permanent ID Card for elected Representatives of PRIs will also be digitally released.
Elected representatives and functionaries of Panchayati Raj Institutions from across the country and across the State of Odisha will attend the National Workshop. Panchayats that have taken initiatives in thematic areas have been invited for participation in the Workshop. Around 1400 participants are expected to attend the National Workshop.
Participants will be consisting of elected representatives & functionaries of Panchayats, key stakeholders, domain experts and agencies doing exemplary work for empowerment and protection of women and children, and ensuring their wholesome development. Representatives of all States/ UTs from State Department of Panchayati Raj & Rural Development, Women and Child Development and other line Departments, NIRD&PR, SIRD&PRs, Panchayati Raj Training Institutes, UN agencies, NGOs, SHGs, will also participate in the conference. The selected Gram Panchayats and functionaries from different States/ UTs will share their experience in relevant thematic area through video film presentation of 3 to 4 minutes during different Technical Sessions/ Panel Discussions.
34 States/ UTs are participating in the National Workshop. Elected Representatives and Functionaries of Panchayati Raj Institutions, BDOs, State officials from Line Departments, UN Agencies will attend the workshop. Gram Panchayats who have exemplary practices on achieving child-friendly and women-friendly village through different convergent actions will demonstrate and share their experiences & innovative models, strategies, approaches, way ahead to institutionalize theme.
Gram Panchayats which have chosen Sankalp on Themes 3 & 9 will participate in the workshop to share their stories on respective aspects of the themes. Representatives from Panchayats will be exposed to the good practices adopted and implemented by other Gram Panchayats. Field visit will be organised on the 3rd Day of the Workshop / Programme to provide an opportunity for exchange of learning.
The main objective of the workshop will be exhibiting the exemplary strategies, approaches, convergent actions and innovative models in context to capacity building & training; best practices; monitoring framework, incentivisation and reflection of themes of SDGs into Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP).
The Bhubaneswar Workshop will provide a platform for the peer learning of Panchayats on various models to institutionalize the process of LSDGs through the lens thematic approach at grassroots level.
The National Workshop endeavours to achieve following objectives during the period of three days:
Creating a space for peer-learning for Gram Panchayats by exchange ideas and experience sharing with other States
Facilitating dialogue between elected representatives of Panchayats and policy makers, Civil Society Organisations, NGOs, Domain Experts
Strengthening implementation strategy on Theme 3: Child Friendly Village and Theme 9: Women Friendly Village
Disseminating and deliberating innovative ideas around on Theme 3: Child Friendly Village and Theme 9: Women Friendly Village.
The National Workshop will serve as an appropriate platform for deliberative action and experiential learning for the Gram Panchayats. It will be participatory and exploratory which will adopt three-fold process:
Video presentations: Presentations will be made by Panchayats and domain experts by showing the video prepared on the exemplary work they have been doing for last few years. They will showcase the process they had adopted, and impact created in their respective Gram Panchayats or area of intervention.
Group / Panel discussions: Panels consisting of Panchayat representatives, domain experts, NGOs along with senior officials of line Departments have been formed which will be chaired by respective Secretary of the concerned Department of Government of India and State Government. Based on the video presentations, panel will discuss the topic shown in the video to be facilitated by senior officials. Representative questions from participants will be taken and addressed by participating Gram Panchayats and experts.
Field Visit: Deliberations and discussions will not happen in four walls of the workshop venue but it will take participants from other States to the Gram Panchayats of Odisha to showcase the work Gram Panchayats in Odisha have undertaken. State representatives will travel to assigned Gram Panchayats and have first-hand experience of the work done and impact it has created. This will help participants to understand the process the Gram Panchayats in Odisha adopted. Field visit will be coordinated and facilitated by Panchayati Raj & Drinking Water Department, Government of Odisha and State Institute for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj (SIRD&PR), Odisha along with Ministry of Panchayati Raj, Government of India.
Background:
Sustainable Development Goals adopted by United Nations came into effect from January 1, 2016. Ministry of Panchayat Raj, Government of India has adopted thematic approach to SDGs – It is approach to ensure ‘local action’ for achieving ‘global plan’. The approach aims to localise SDGs in rural areas through PRIs, especially Gram Panchayats by clubbing 17 ‘Goals’ into ‘9 Themes’. Appropriate policy decisions and revisions have followed resulting into revamping of Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA) and Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP) Guidelines which smoothens the process of Localisation of Sustainable Development Goals (LSDGs) in Gram Panchayats.
In pursuance to the agenda of localising Sustainable Development Goals in Panchayats, Ministry of Panchayat Raj, Government of India is organising a series of Thematic Workshops/ Conferences on Localization of Sustainable Development Goals (LSDGs) based on the nine themes to be saturated by the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs), at different locations in close collaboration with State/ UT Departments of Panchayati Raj, State Institutes of Rural Development & Panchayati Raj (SIRD&PRs), line Ministries/ Departments and other stakeholders. The effective and impactful implementation of LSDGs can occur only when the concept and its process are properly understood, imbibed and implemented by the three-tier Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in order to ensure no one is left behind.
Vision of LSDGs Theme 3 – Child Friendly Village is to ensure that all the children are able to enjoy their rights for survival, development, participation and protection. The Gram Panchayats needs to provide safe, secure and clean environment to all children wherein each child can develop to their full potential by ensuring the basic requirements in terms of Health, Education, Nutrition and Protected environment for wellbeing of each child.
Vision of LSDGs Theme 9 – Women Friendly Village is to achieve gender equality, provide equal opportunity, Equal rights, empowerment opportunities and safe and secured environment for the wellbeing of women. Apart from this appropriate facilities of Health, Education, Nutrition. the theme, it is aimed to reduce crimes, ensuring safe public and private spheres, improving women’s participation in decision-making process for sustainable development, and equal pay for equal work, etc. for women at the grassroots.
