Support to Resettlement and Reconciliation through the United Nations Joint Programme for Peace (SURAR)

This project aims to providing timely and strategically focused assistance towards two peacebuilding priorities that tackle core grievances of the minority Tamil community. The interventions contribute towards securing and sustaining the peacebuilding process, through helping to build trust and confidence amongst the Tamil community in the direction in which the country is moving

Overall objective of project

  • To help advance the resettlement of returned Tamils through livelihood support
  • To support reconciliation efforts through improving the delivery of services in Tamil language by front-line institutions

Target Beneficiaries

900 conflict-affected and resettled households with high vulnerability, including female-headed households, conflict-affected youth, and persons with disabilities.

Strategies

The SURAR project adopts a strategic two-pronged approach:
  • As a first step, working with the Cooperatives Department, the project is capitalising on existing engagement with local cooperatives to scale up and extend fast and effective livelihood interventions that materialise rapidly and help member households establish economically viable livelihoods.
  • As a second, parallel and complementary step, the project is focusing on facilitating market access and widening market opportunities through engaging private sector partners interested in establishing backward supply chain linkages. Specifically, SURAR draws on its local knowledge to promote opportunities for companies to invest, supporting them to work through cooperatives as a bridging mechanism to reach local producers/suppliers at the necessary scale in a cost effective manner.
Towards improving of delivery services in the Tamil Language, as the first step work is ongoing in the pilot phase and selection of front-line institutions. On completion of pilot phase, scaling-up and rolling out of tracking tool will take place with results being used to bring improvements in service delivery across additional key front-line institutions. A core element of the support will be institutionalising the tracking tool, and thus enabling the national partners to lead a process of repeated annual surveying that serves to sustain focus and energy behind investments in provision of Tamil language services.

Expected results

Through innovative approaches, coupled with engagement with private sector, and cooperatives, scaling up of sustainable, high impact results will lead to increased livelihoods and improved access to services for marginalised rural communities in the North.

Through improving service delivery in Tamil language, individuals from different groups will interact on a level playing field and have increased levels of mutual understanding. Delivery of services by front-line institutions in Tamil language will enable Sri Lankan society to consider that justice is being done and restore a sense of confidence in State institutions, thereby preventing violations and abuses from happening again and contributing to long-term peace.
 
The above will contribute to the confidence of the minority Tamil community in the reconciliation and resettlement processes and promote inclusion.