USAID/OTI Sri Lanka Hot Topics July 2004
Livestock for Farmers in War-affected Communities
OTI grantee HOPE Sri Lanka in Ampara is providing cows and chicks for fifty war-affected Muslim and Sinhala communities in the area. The farmers will use the new livestock to increase household incomes. The first delivery occurred in mid-July when thirty families in Wanagamuwa village received a truckload of cattle. In addition, the farmers were provided with all the necessary materials to construct sheds for their cows. This group also has engaged the Department of Animal Production and Health (DAP&H;) to obtain technical assistance in livestock breeding and production. As a result of this combined assistance, the farmers and their families are making plans to produce and sell their milk directly to the town market without going through middlemen.
OTI Leverages World Food Program Funds for Reconstruction
Twenty years of civil war and neglect has left Batticaloa’s infrastructure in disrepair. Villages in the district have limited access to each other, restricting economic and social activities of residents. The World Food Program (WFP) has responded by rebuilding roads in this part of eastern Sri Lanka under a "Food-for-Work" program. However, limited funds for the program meant that they were unable to construct culverts, which are needed to make the roads passable during periods of heavy rainfall. OTI supplemented WFP efforts by constructing eleven culverts on the roads between the program target villages. OTI’s support included the purchase of construction materials for the culverts, transport and a skilled labor component. This project was completed within fifty days. During the activity, OTI coordinated with local authority leaders, the Divisional Secretary, the technical officer in the Divisional Secretariat, the District Secretary, the technical engineer in the district government and the WFP.
Sinhalese and Tamil Farmers Join Together for Community Service
OTI is providing support to the Sivapuram/Dehiwatta integrated agricultural project to promote peaceful co-existence and trust between Sinhalese and Tamil farming community members in the Sivapuram and Dehiwatta area. Forty Sinhalese farmers and thirty-three Tamil farmers joined together in a one-day Shramadhana (voluntary community service) activity to clean the road that connects the two villages. In spite of the language barrier, they worked together to improve this shared infrastructure, an effort that was coordinated by both the Sivapuram and Dehiwatta Women’s’ Rural Development Societies. One unexpected activity outcome was the financial contribution of Sivapuram’s Tamil community towards the printing of 500 leaflets for a Sinhalese person’s funeral in Dehiwatta.
Monitoring and Evaluation Lessons for Grant Activities
OTI Sri Lanka’s first round of grants monitoring and evaluation generated interesting observations and lessons about designing of grant activities. One particular example was that tangible benefits of peace activities require a significant facilitation component to subtly link the provision of assistance with the absence of war. Another related finding was that most grantees undertaking tangible benefits of peace activities do not possess the capacity or skill set necessary to facilitate this conceptual link. One recommendation was that future grants of this nature should include such a facilitation component. The M&E; exercise enabled OTI staff to compile an initial list of resource groups capable of carrying out needed facilitation, including former grantees from a number of locations around the country. The Ampara office will be the first to pilot this new approach when it partners local peacebuilding organizations who have received prior OTI support with officials from regional hospitals in Moneragala and Batticaloa that will be receiving OTI-purchased medical equipment.
For further information, please contact:
In Sri Lanka: Justin Sherman, Sri Lanka Country Representative, jsherman@usaid.gov
In Washington, D.C.: Rachel Wax, Asia and Near East Program Manager, 202-712-1243, rwax@usaid.gov
For more information on USAID/OTI’s program in Sri Lanka, visit the USAID website at:
http://www.usaid.gov/ Key Word – “OTI”
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