As we mark the first anniverssary of the Gorkha Earthquake, the pace of reconstruction has been slow. Much time was spent on political wrangling in setting up the National Reconstruction Authority (NRA). Even after the NRA was established, it failed to deliver at a pace that was expected. Against this background, Mukul Humagain and Prithvi Man Shrestha spoke to Govinda Raj Pokhrel, former chief executive officer (CEO) of the NRA and vice-chairperson of the National Planning Commission about the lapses in the reconstruction process, NRA’s performance and the lessons from the great quake.

For the NRA to function properly the government needs to support it wholeheartedly and make sure there is no political interference

Why do think the NRA has not been able to function properly?

The NRA has not been able to function properly mainly due to three reasons. First, political interference in the NRA killed the momentum. For instance, I was appointed the CEO of the NRA for two weeks, during which period I had carried out a few tasks such as drafting of the reconstruction policy and work policies for the NRA. This momentum was disrupted by unnecessary political meddling. With the change of the government, the CEO could have been replaced but at least till the time they decided on the new CEO, the NRA should have been allowed to do its work.

Second, the government wants the NRA to start working but has not been supporting it adequately. The authority is newly created and requires human resource, which the government has failed to provide.

Third, the CEO could have saved time by not vising India and China. Although the NRA officials’ willingness and commitment to work are commendable, they lack innovation and pragmatism. If the government could not provide the NRA with adequate human resource, the officials should have come up with some alternative. For instance, there are many people who have passed the written portion of Lok Sewa (civil service exams) numerous times but could not clear the interview phase. Such people could have been hired by the NRA. Retired technical experts from the security forces could also have been hired. In terms of practicability, the authority should not have ordered the (I)NGOs not to work. The guidelines and procedures should have been adopted on a war footing.  You simply cannot ask (I)NGOs that are willing and ready to spend $200 million not to work.

Why is it that the government has not supported the NRA adequately?

The CPN-UML, once it came to power, tried to get the NRA under its influence and appointed the CEO of its preference. This is expected from a ruling party in a democracy. But after establishing the NRA and appointing its CEO, it should have supported the authority to carry out its work properly, which it did not. The authority needed 200 staff members but the government did not even send 100. How can the CEO perform when there is no secretary or other important office holders in the authority? This is political dishonesty.

Even the line ministries that were expected to begin rebuilding affected infrastructures have not been able to do their job. Why?

Even in this regard there has been a lack of pragmatism. For instance, the design for the houses and building codes were already in place by Kartik and the Cabinet had already approved them by Mangsir, but the NRA was still adamant on carrying out the survey of the damaged households. Instead, people should have been allowed to build their houses immediately and the government could have paid them after verifying that they have followed the building codes. The government aid that was handed out in the monsoon and then in the winter was not required. Moreover, the government should have provided aid for all the new houses that would be earthquake resistant, so as to ensure strong houses in the case of another quake. This would have saved the government money in the long term. This would also have reduced social costs. Residing in temporary shelters posed a lot of social problems. For instance, children were trafficked, women spent months in an insecure environment and diseases spread.

Is it possible that lapses in the reconstruction process will lead the country towards a situation akin to Haiti?

The government’s commitment to reconstruction has been poor. If this continues and if the NRA remains handicapped, then there are possibilities of Nepal becoming another Haiti. But we can avoid such a situation if the government becomes proactive and equips the NRA with required resources and manpower, and if the NRA also gets innovative and pragmatic. The reconstruction works have only been delayed by four to five months and the the NRA—although it has been working slowly—is headed in the right direction. So if it is allowed to work properly, things will be back on track. But for the NRA to function properly the government needs to support it wholeheartedly and make sure there is no political interference.

Political infighting among parties aside, why does it seem that even our bureaucracy has failed to learn from similar disasters elsewhere?

It is all about credibility. The NRA had already started losing its authority during its formation due to political manoeuvring among different political parties. Thus, when an institution loses its credibility, even the bureaucrats will lose respect for it and will not take it seriously. When I was the CEO, a lot of people were trying to join the NRA. But because of political mishandling, the credibility of the NRA eroded over time and the bureaucrats did not want to be a part of it.

Do you get a sense of confusion within the NRA about its mandate since you left?

We needed the NRA for a specific reason: To bridge the gaps in the procedures and mandates of our existing ministries in the changed context. We have all the line ministries in place which can carry out the reconstruction process. But these ministries lack the capacity to implement reconstruction works of this magnetude at a fast pace. There are due processes for things like land acquisition, which the ministries need to follow and which take a lot of time. Thus, the NRA was established to reform such lengthy processes for the ministries and other government bodies so that they could function quickly and smoothly. Initially many of the mandates of the NRA were already agreed upon, but with the change of government they altered the existing mandate. So the NRA is confused about its role. If we want the authority to be successful, its mandate needs to remain same even with a change in government.

What lessons have we learned or need to learn from the earthquake?

It is very clear from last year’s quakes that we lack preparedness for disasters. The National Planning Commision (NPC) had already made some recommendations in this regard even before the quake. For instance, a critical problem during the earthquakes is damage of hydropower projects. When the hydropower project in Jure was destroyed by landslides, there was no rescue for six months because our security forces lacked expertise. Thus, the NPC had recommended that the security forces should construct the hydropower project in Rolpa so that they have the expertise to rebuild a hydropower project in case of damage during disasters. The other thing that the NPC had recommended was that the Nepal Army should train 7,000 people on average in the national cadet corps as to how to respond during disasters. This is very crucial as the common people of the community are the first responders during disasters. Such recommendations should be heeded. The govenrment needs to invest in preparedness measures for future disasters.  

The other thing that has been clear from the earthquake is that the government is losing its credibility. Although it performed well during the rescue and relief phase, it lost its reliability during the reconstruction phase. Thus, it is essential for the government to regain people’s trust. We need to build a culture of the government winning people’s trust during disasters.

Another flaw in the reconstruction process is that the authority is only concentrating in physical reconstruction, and economic reconstruction has been sidelined. People who have moved to the urban areas after the quake will not go back to their villages unless there is some economic reconstruction in the villages. According to the Post Disaster Need Assessment report, the economic loss to the nation is about 25 percent of the Gross Domestic Product. So it is imperative that we focus on economic reconstruction as well.

How do you assess the role of the donors?

Donors will carry on their work within their own modality when the government fails to provide a concrete framework for them to work in the country. The government needs to clarify its procedures and persuade donors to follow it.