Overview of the Social Audit:

During 24^th–26^th April 2026, the PESHA Project successfully conducted a comprehensive Social Audit across Gandaki Rural Municipality and Sahid Lakhan Rural Municipality. The audit was carried out through 52 community interactions, encompassing 4 Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) with 38 participants and 14 Key Informant Interviews (KIIs). The process actively engaged a diverse range of stakeholders, including farmers, Experienced Leader Farmers (ELFs), pulping operators, Coffee Nursery Managers, local government representatives, MPMT Board representatives, and project staffs.

Key objectives:

• To verify the implementation of project activities and results through direct community involvement.
• To assess adherence to project policies, guidelines, and established procedures.
• To measure the levels of transparency, accountability, and community participation in project execution.
• To document the lessons learned and gather actionable recommendations for continuous improvement.

Achievements:

• Beneficiary feedback: Valuable suggestions and inputs were gathered from both beneficiaries and stakeholders, strengthening project responsiveness.
• Community ownership: Trust in the project has grown, with communities demonstrating stronger ownership and engagement.
• Cluster representation: Active participation of representatives from diverse clusters provided deeper insights into the ground realities.
• Information collection: Data gathered through Focus Group Discussions (FGD) and Key Informant Interviews (KII) enriched project understanding and planning.

Learnings:

• Social audit dialogue: The social audit process created space for direct and constructive dialogue with community members.
• Effective methodologies: FGD and KII proved to be effective tools for collecting reliable and context-specific information.
• Transparency enhancement: Involving local stakeholders in project processes enhanced transparency and accountability.