Former Foes Restore War-torn Sri Lankan Infrastructure and Livelihood Together

A 26-year civil war devastated an estimated $200 billion worth of economic, physical, and social infrastructure in Sri Lanka. This destruction was aggravated by droughts and floods, pushing many Sri Lankans into poverty, starvation, and unemployment.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) assisted Sri Lanka’s restoration efforts through a project aimed at recovering the livelihood of internally displaced persons (IDP) while rehabilitating critical infrastructure. Through a cash-for-work program, the project employed IDPs from Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Muallaitivu, Mannar, and Vavuniya to rehabilitate irrigation canals and rural access roads. The program featured a savings mechanism which required IDPs to save a portion of their incomes to newly restored banks. It also included an agricultural skills development program that prepared beneficiaries for self-employment.

The project employed 2,674 IDPs who assisted in the restoration of 360 kilometers (km) of rural access roads and 83 km of field irrigation canals. It also empowered IDPs to use their savings in self-employment activities that harnessed the training they received from the project’s agricultural skills development program. The project also paved the way for an invaluable benefit—that of uniting former foes in a series of activities that helped in rebuilding a nation.

This knowledge showcase details how, through an innovative approach that targets the most vulnerable, ADB was able to assist not just in rebuilding lives, but a country as well.