Kathmandu – The social mobilization programme launched by the Poverty Alleviation Fund (PAF) has been found questionable, and its strategy unclear.

The monitoring report prepared by the National Planning Commission on the structural management and operation and the effectiveness of the PAF activities painted bleak picture.
The PAF set up to help reduce poverty by mainstreaming the poor and excluded communities in the mainstream development is led by the Prime Minister.

It has been conducting programmes on livelihood and small infrastructures by forming 32,000 community organizations with the expansion of its programmes in 66 districts across the country.
The NPC report on PAF has mentioned that monitoring and evaluation was ineffective and the programmes failed to reach the target groups.

Although nearly one million households were benefitted with various programmes as employment generation and capacity building, lack of professional capacity among PAF employees, disparity in experience, increase in corruption cases, lack of mutual trust among the units it promoted, and incompetent secretariats were severe problems suffering the PAF.
The NPC has suggested the PAF to reduce the number of community organizations to a manageable level. The PAF is in need of reform, report pointed out.   (RSS)