The Goldhunga DLRC has been successful thanks to a strong partnership with the local government and community. It has partnered government services since its founding days, when the primary awareness-raising strategy was advertising its after school educational programs in government schools. The center has done a good job of working closely with political parties and officials while still remaining a trusted apolitical community resource.

Much of this work has been led by DLRC President Ms. Kanti Bajracharya. She became engaged in Didi Bahini’s work after participating in a political empowerment training, where she learned about models of community development for women. She helped to found the local Women’s Forum with initially only seven women, each of whom began saving NPR 100 per month or less depending on income to develop community programs. In just 2 years, they expanded programming from one local ward to all nine wards, and grew membership to over 49 women, raising total NPR 2 lakh. However, they realized that to make these programs sustainable they would need to invest money in a reliable resource – and what better investment than the entrepreneurial spirit of local women. The group began giving small business loans to community women, with their first ever creditor being Ms. Mandira Devi Shrestha. She borrowed NPR 10k to buy chickens, and was able to quickly expand her business into a sustainable livelihood. The second loan was given to Ms. Indira Kumari to open a small Newari restaurant. Both women are now Women’s Forum members with successful businesses, and through becoming economically empowered, Ms. Kumari has even been motivated to run for local government office.