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This research empirically explores whether and how informal forums facilitate the participation of ordinary people in the local policymaking process. Using qualitative data generated from 2014 to 2016 in the Butwal Sub-Metropolitan City in western Nepal, it argues that informal forums are the most conducive participatory platforms for ordinary people and that these forums can bring positive influences on the formal processes of policymaking. Examined through the analytical framework of society-driven participatory institutions, findings of this research suggest that informal forums, if designed properly, can contribute to securing democratic rights of ordinary people by allowing them to participate to raise and deliberate their issues in the local policymaking process. In addition to broadening the existing knowledge about the role of informal forums in local governance, findings of this research offer new insights for local authorities who are passionate about participatory local policymaking.

MotivationNepal adopted a federal constitution in 2015 that created autonomous local governments across the country. A prime aim was to encourage ordinary people's participation in local decision‐making processes.PurposeTo what extent do local governments in rural Nepal adopt informal approaches—approaches that reflect local social needs and desires—to participation in decision‐making?Methods and approachAs part of interpretive case studies, the author gathered qualitative evidence as a participant observer of local government in five rural municipalities in Rasuwa District, a remote area on the northern border.A framework was created to capture the concepts of participatory governance and sociology to guide data collection and analysis.FindingsIn the five municipalities studied, decisions were successively made in forums at village, ward and municipal levels. In the village, participation was considerable: all persons, all voices could be heard. But as proposals were aggregated upwards to ward and municipal levels, citizens participated less, being replaced by elected representatives and civil servants.Nepal has showcased successful participatory processes by incorporating diverse local groups in a range of policy areas such as community forests, or in the operation of public services such as water or schools. The present research acknowledges their success in widening and deepening citizen participation; it also brings new knowledge to bear on deeply rooted culturally accepted informal participatory methods in rural local governments.Policy implicationsBecause each local government has its own circumstances in which to operationalize participatory governance, reforms should recognize the prevalence of informalities in rural municipalities and the dominance of formalities in urban municipalities.