Sewalanka field staff pictured above have been trained by international and local legal professionals and will soon start training community-based organisations.

Sewalanka Foundation has linked up with the International Development Law Organisation (IDLO), a UN affiliated non-governmental organisation, to promote legal education related to microfinance and enterprise development activities.

The initiative aims to address the lack of understanding among micro-finance clients, entrepreneurs, entrepreneur associations and other community-based organisations (CBOs) about legal and regulatory issues. This lack of understanding is seen as a major factor contributing to the slow growth of the micro and small enterprise sector.

Sewalanka's well established contact with over 500 Sri Lankan CBOs made the organisation an ideal candidate to facilitate a legal education training program for beneficiaries of various micro-financing and livelihood development services.

The training, which is taking place throughout 2007, covers legal matters relating to lending and borrowing, leasing, insurance, taxation, trading, contracting, import and export, land and labour management, the environment and water use.

An initial needs assessment was carried out through a series of discussions involving community members and Sewalanka field staff to identify the key focus areas of the program.

The training is being implemented in three stages.

The first stage involves 60 Sewalanka field staff – 30 Sinhala speaking and 30 Tamil speaking – being trained by international and local legal professionals.

In the second stage, 100 CBO officials will be trained by local legal professionals assisted by trained Sewalanka staff.

The final rollout will see 600 CBO members trained by Sewalanka staff and assisted by local legal professionals and CBO officials.

Training of all Sewalanka field staff was completed mid-May this year.

IDLO is also supporting the development of a suitable training module – the first of its kind – which will make the continuation of this training program easy, effective and sustainable.