History
WAFED is an independent national network of people affected by water and energy projects as well as of local concerned groups in Nepal. Some of its members are individual activists engaged in the field of human rights, environment, development and climate change in Nepal and internationally.

Formation
WAFED inherits the legacy of Arun Concerned Group that successfully helped challenge the economic, social and environmental flaws in the World Bank-led Arun III hydroelectric project. After a series of campaigns from Nepali Supreme Court to the Bank's Inspection Panel in 1994, the World Bank decided to withdraw its support for Arun III on 2 August 1995. Encouraged by this massive success, activists of the Arun Concerned Group and other similar groups carried forward the spirit of the campaign by forming the National Concerned Soceity in 1996 to build on the momentum generated in the development debate in Nepal. These groups, under the banner of the NCS, led various campaigns for the reform of the ADB-and Japanese-funded Kali Gandaki 'A' Hydroelectric Project and various other hydropower projects in the country during the period of 1996-2001. WAFED came into existence out of this process.?WAFED was formally established in March 2001 after a week-long national assembly of over 100 people from all over the country, including various experts and academics active in Nepal in the field of alternative approaches to water and energy resource development. The assembly was organized discuss the findings of the Final Report of the World Commission on Dams (WCD) and its relevance and follow up in Nepal. It has now become a unified structure of various campaign groups over the past 10 years.

Structure & Affiliations
WAFED is governed by a general assembly that meets once a year. Its day-to-day activities are run and implemented by an elected Executive Committee of 9 to 15 members representing various project-affected areas and campaigns. All the Secretariat work and campaign activities have been managed by a group of volunteers from a range of disciplines and training. WAFED is a part of various regional and international network such as the Himalayan and Peninsular Hydro-ecological Network (HYPHEN) and the International Committee of Dams, Rivers and Peoples (ICDRP). It is also a Forum Member of the Dams and Development Project of UNEP and one of the most active members of the Nepal's National Task Force on Dams and Development. WAFED is currently the secretariat of Himalayan and Peninsular Hydro-ecological Network (HYPHEN).

Objectives