Sewalanka Foundation Chairman's Message 2006

For a small island, our country is incredibly diverse. We have moist green mountains, dry flat plains, and sandy dunes and beaches. We have dry zone forest and rainforests and mangroves and wetlands. In addition to this natural diversity, our ancestors developed an amazing number of agricultural plants; vegetables, fruits, legumes and more than two thousand varieties of rice. On this island, you can find all of the four main world religions - Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity - and many people who are capable of communicating in two or even three languages. Each region of the country has its own unique history of ancient kingdoms and rule by colonial powers. Each village has its own local shrines, festivals, and traditions.

Working as a national development NGO, we at Sewalanka are constantly reminded of our island's diversity. We partner with community-based organizations (CBOs) in 950 villages throughout the island. We work with dry zone paddy and vegetable farmers, coastal fishing communities, savings groups in the upcountry tea plantations, community conservation committees, women's societies, and handicraft producer groups. Each CBO has a different history, different environment, different needs, different activities, and different plans for the future. Some are focused on rehabilitating community infrastructure or managing shared resources. Others are using revolving loan funds and microcredit to establish new microenterprises. Some use their societies to improve access to government services or influence government planning. Others put more emphasis on improved market linkages and developing systems for collective purchasing and marketing.

This diversity is the reason for Sewalanka's decentralized structure. Most program decisions are taken locally by district-level staff who were born and raised in that region. Many of those that work with the internally displaced have been displaced themselves. Those who work with farming communities, usually come from farming families. They are familiar with the local context and are able to respond more quickly and appropriately to the concerns of the people in the region. Our decentralized structure is one of our core strengths. We would not have been able to respond to the tsunami disaster the way we did if all of our decisions were concentrated in our headquarters.

Still, decentralization poses a number of challenges. In the aftermath of the tsunami, Sewalanka's workload, geographical coverage and staff expanded rapidly and we began to see new problems with communication, coordination and procedural inconsistencies. We were pressured by some international agencies and auditors to centralize our operational management in Colombo. After many internal discussions, we found an alternative solution. In 2005-2006, as part of our overall restructuring process, we have strengthened our decentralized approach by creating a new regional Field Director role. The Field Directors support district-level program development and monitoring, improve coordination, and strengthen the impact, quality, and sustainability of Sewalanka's work in each region. They also serve on a national Management Committee which meets monthly to improve coordination and address unresolved operational issues.

Not only has this structural change improved coordination and communication between the headquarters and the district offices, it has also increased the exchange of ideas and experiences across districts and regions. Field Directors, District Directors and district staff have more opportunities to discuss their thoughts on management approaches, social mobilization, CBO strengthening, microfinance, and cross-cutting issues like gender, peace, and environmental conservation. Each region is developing its own special areas of expertise. Because of the internal conflict, the Northern team has a lot of experience in the logistical management of relief and rehabilitation activities and providing psychosocial services. The East has had a relatively stable environment and has a strong history of social mobilization, CBO capacity building and microfinance. The densely populated South has more experience with enterprise development and environmental initiatives. As the situation in the country continues to change, these specializations will create many opportunities for cross-regional capacity building.

Diversity is our island's greatest resource. It enables us to produce both the rice we eat and the tea we drink. It provides opportunity for innovation and the exchange of ideas. It demands a creative system of governance that maintains unity while celebrating diversity and providing a space for Sri Lanka's diverse communities to innovate and make decisions about the issues that affect their daily lives. As John F. Kennedy once said, "The wave of the future is not the conquest of the world by a single dogmatic creed, but the liberation of the diverse energies of free nations and free men."

Harsha Kumara Navaratne
Chairman
Sewalanka Foundation