Transition Initiatives: Sri Lanka Fact Sheet March 2007
USAID's Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI) program in Sri Lanka aimed to generate greater support for a negotiated peace settlement to end the island nation's longstanding internal conflict. To accomplish this, OTI sought to:
- Increase awareness and understanding on transition issues, and change attitudes sustaining the conflict, through information dissemination, advocacy, dialogue, and debate, and
- Mobilize and link peace constituencies through activities promoting inclusive, collaborative decision-making and resource allocation at the local level.
From program startup in March 2003 through mid-March 2007, the OTI/Sri Lanka program funded a total of 710 grants worth $29.3 million.
The OTI program took a bottom-up approach to peace building by working predominantly with community-based civil society groups, media entities, and government officials. The OTI program was implemented by two primary partners: Development Alternatives, Inc. (DAI) and Internews Network, Inc. DAI oversaw the small-grants program and managed OTI offices in the capital of Colombo, the eastern towns of Trincomalee and Ampara, and Matara along the southern coast. OTI ended its oversight of the DAI contract in March 2007, and the USAID Mission in Colombo will exercise direct management of that contract to an expected end date in March 2008.
Under a $1.3 million agreement signed in February 2006, the Internews Network-managed regional radio initiative bolstered OTI's efforts to disseminate accurate, balanced information from a multiplicity of viewpoints. The U.S.-based media development organization provided practicing and aspiring journalists in the South and East with training and access to radio production facilities and equipment through resource centers known as "media houses." The 18-month agreement with the Internews Network runs through August 2007.
Increasing Awareness and Changing Attitudes
The dearth of accurate and balanced information, and limited opportunities for the general public to provide feedback to policymakers, has undermined confidence and progress not only in Sri Lanka's protracted peace process but in tsunami recovery as well. The OTI/Sri Lanka program supported media- and information-related activities that empowered citizens to participate more confidently in the national debate on peace and tsunami recovery. Activities utilized traditional and alternative media and the arts to improve knowledge, generate social discourse, change attitudes, and promote constructive, nonviolent action on issues of local and national importance.
Promoting Participation and Collaboration Among Diverse Groups
In an effort to model decentralized decision-making and resource allocation, OTI enabled citizens and local authorities to work together across ethnic and political boundaries to identify community improvement projects they could plan, implement, and manage together, building relationships among people with diverse backgrounds and views. Projects that resulted from these initiatives in both conflict- and tsunami-affected communities included the rehabilitation of public markets, health clinics, schools, and transportation infrastructure, as well as livelihoods-oriented skills training. The mobilization of large numbers of volunteer workers, a local tradition known as shramadana that cuts across cultural and political lines, was a central component of these activities.
Sustaining Peace through Tsunami Recovery
In the aftermath of the December 26, 2004, Asian Tsunami, which within one hour claimed the lives of nearly half the number of Sri Lankans killed in more than 20 years of armed conflict, OTI's field-office infrastructure, experienced staff, and strong partnerships helped USAID to undertake early, effective disaster response initiatives. In July 2005, OTI received $19.95 million, allocated through the U.S. Congressional Tsunami Supplemental Bill, for small-grant activities to address recovery needs in the southern and eastern coastal areas. In support of the above mentioned objectives, OTI used the additional funding to stabilize tsunami-affected communities in six districts with its trademark peace building approach, valuing process as much as product, specifically through small-scale infrastructure rehabilitation, livelihoods restoration, and activities fostering communication between citizens and local government authorities.
OTI's Legacy in Sri Lanka
On March 15, 2007, after four years of intensive work in Sri Lanka, OTI handed over to the USAID Mission the direct management of the small-grants and regional radio programs. Given that the current USAID/Sri Lanka five-year development strategy comes to an end in 2007, opportunities exist for these now Mission-managed initiatives to jump start new activities and consolidate in new directions. Among the lessons learned that will likely take hold is the value of field-based programming in strategic locations. Such programming enables a more conflict-sensitive and responsive approach to development and provides the type of direct local access required to inform work in fluid, often volatile, environments.
For further information, please contact:
In Washington, D.C.: Christie Sunwoo, Program Manager, Asia and Near East, 202-712-407, csunwoo@usaid.gov, 202-712-1417
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