Sri Lanka

Country Overview

Since the end of the civil war in 2009, Sri Lanka has experienced a range of local, national and international peacebuilding and reconciliation initiatives. Despite these efforts, the country continues to grapple with the legacies of conflict, facing ongoing violence and tension along racial and religious lines.

As Sri Lanka navigates post-war reconstruction and statebuilding, the question remains: What are the most effective ways to foster comprehensive and inclusive reconciliation?

Our work in Sri Lanka focuses on how everyday people understand concepts like peace, reconciliation, and social cohesion. We use these insights to measure changes in community dynamics and share our findings with key stakeholders who can drive positive change.

Our Projects

Sri Lanka

Co-creating Everyday Indicators of Reconciliation

Sri Lanka

Innovative Design and Evaluation of Reconciliation Programs

Our Impact

Our research in Sri Lanka amplifies the understandings and experiences of everyday people regarding reconciliation. These everyday indicators reveal that reconciliation extends beyond war-related issues and inter-ethnic dynamics to include conflicts within communities, interactions with state agencies, gender inequality and development. This comprehensive understanding highlights the need for programs that address these interconnected topics and adapt to local needs and priorities.

Groundbreaking Use of EPI Data

For the first time in Sri Lanka, Everyday Peace Indicators’ data has been used to inform community-specific reconciliation programming. Our collaboration with USAID and its partners has demonstrated the viability and effectiveness of this approach. When implemented, it significantly promotes progress towards reconciliation.

Enhancing Civil Society Approaches

Beyond the SCORE program, our findings offer valuable insights for civil society organizations and other stakeholders. We recommend a community-centric, conflict-sensitive, and flexible approach to programming. By adopting holistic measurements of impact, stakeholders can ensure their interventions resonate with the real-life experiences and priorities of the communities they aim to serve.

Promoting Progress Through Collaboration

Our partnership with USAID in Sri Lanka showcases how community-specific data can inform and enhance reconciliation programs. This collaborative effort emphasizes the importance of localizing reconciliation strategies and adapting them to the unique contexts of different communities. By doing so, we can foster a more inclusive and enduring peace, addressing the root causes of conflict and promoting development and equality.

Resources

Online article

Navigating Reconciliation: Sri Lanka at the 15 Year Post-War Juncture

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Dabeiba (Antioquia), más allá de la fosa común

Opinion: To build peace in war-torn Colombia, we need to think smaller

Dabeiba, más allá de la fosa. Así se manifiesta la reconciliación cotidiana

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2019 Indicators (30GNDs)

This infographic showcases EPI data from 2019, collected across 30 Grama Niladhari Divisions (GNDs) within the 10 EPI clusters in Sri Lanka. It illustrates the frequency of codes assigned to various indicator categories, highlighting the categories most emphasized by communities in addressing their everyday needs for reconciliation.

2022 Indicators (11 GNDs)

This infographic showcases EPI data from the year 2022, collected across 11 Grama Niladhari Divisions (GNDs) of the 30 GNDs in the main sample, within the 10 EPI clusters in Sri Lanka. It illustrates the frequency of codes assigned to various indicator categories, highlighting the categories most emphasized by communities in addressing their everyday needs for reconciliation, during the economic crisis in Sri Lanka.

2019 and 2022 Indicators (cluster based)

This infographic showcases EPI data per Grama Niladhari Divisions (GNDs) for the years 2019 and 2022 across the 10 EPI clusters in Sri Lanka. It illustrates the frequency of codes assigned to various indicator categories, highlighting the categories most emphasized by communities in addressing their everyday needs for reconciliation in the two separate years.

2019 and 2022 indicators (category based)

This infographic showcases EPI data per category coded for the years 2019 and 2022 in the Grama Niladhari Divisions (GNDs) across the 10 EPI clusters in Sri Lanka. It illustrates the frequency of codes assigned to various indicator categories, highlighting the differences in the categories most emphasized by communities in addressing their everyday needs for reconciliation in the two separate years.

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