Cash for Repair & Reconstruction Project (CfRR), Sri Lanka

a_SriLanka_image011.jpgMore than 10’000 Tsunami-affected houses rehabilitated by the house owner themselves in a cash-based participatory approach in two districts in Sri Lanka with the support from the people of Switzerland.
The final external evaluation commissioned by the Swiss Consortium in December 2008 draws a highly positive picture of the project in terms of efficiency, appropriateness and impact. more >>

Less then a month after the devastating Tsunami of December 26, 2004, the government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) declared the reconstruction of houses and the rehabilitation of the livelihood of the affected population as their priority.

The GoSL’s Task Force for Rebuilding the Nation (TAFREN) with the support of the World Bank, adapted an already existing programme, originally intended to target conflict affected communities in the North East, into a nation-wide participatory post-Tsunami housing rehabilitation scheme. The programme included all 12 Tsunami affected districts.

Empowerment

The objective was to empower the house owners to rehabilitate or reconstruct their fully or partly damaged houses according to their own needs and perspectives. Around 45'000 beneficiaries were eligible island-wide to receive of multiple conditional cash grants payable in instalments.

In response to GoSL's international appeal by the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the German "Keditanstalt für Wiederaufbau" and Switzerland, later to be joined by the Netherlands and IFRC, agreed to support this programme. The total value of this large-scale venture amounted to more than USD 100 Mio.

Swiss support

In consideration of the very high solidarity response of the Swiss population to the Tsunami victims, a Consortium of Swiss Organisations (Swiss Consortium), consisting of Swiss Solidarity (SwS), Swiss Red Cross (SRC), Swiss Interchurch Aid (HEKS) and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) was formed with the aim to provide not only funding but also assistance in cash transfer management and technical know-how to the GoSL as well as to the beneficiaries. It was agreed with GoSL that Switzerland would cover the two districts Trincomalee (east) and Matara (south) financially and operationally under the so-called Cash for Repair & Reconstruction (CfRR) project.

Achieved results

The financial commitment of the Swiss Consortium in the two districts amounted finally to CHF 19.6 Mio (USD 15.5 Mio). By the end of April 2008 about 10'500 houses had been rehabilitated by their owners. This includes 1391 fully and 4860 partly damaged houses in the Matara District and about 1970 fully and 2440 partly damaged houses in Trincomalee. The total number of beneficiaries of this project exeeds 50’000 people.

Besides the direct financial involvement, the support of the Swiss consortium included the establishment, management and the coaching of local partners in the application of a specifically developed data base system that allows the steering of the complex multiple conditional cash grants process. Subsequently the powerful tool was introduced in other affected districts. The Swiss expertise, including rendering of advisory services and the coaching of international and local personnel, was appreciated greatly and perceived as invaluable by the GoSL as well as by other involved international organisations involved in the operation.

Documentation of CfRR

Please refer to the documentation below to learn more about the CfRR project:

External Evaluations of the CfRR project

Documentation of the CfRR project by the Swiss Consortium

  • Consolidated Final Report of the Cash for Repair and Reconstruction (CfRR) Project of the Swiss Consortium, Oct. 2008 (pdf, 1279kB)
  • Fact sheet on the Cash for repair and Reconstruction (CfRR) Project in Sri Lanka (July 2007) implemented by the Swiss Consortium (pdf en 65kB; pdf de 53kB)
  • Fact sheet on the Swiss Advisory Mandate to the Community Recovery and Reconstruction Partnership CRRP in Sri Lanka (in prep)

Other documentation on the CfRR project

  • Joint Post-Tsunami Recovery and Reconstruction Report by the Government of Sri Lanka and the Development Partners, Dec. 2006 (pdf, 3336kB).
  • Implementation guidelines (August 2006) of the the Community Recovery and Reconstruction Partnership (CRRP) to assist tsunami affected families in Sri Lanka by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Sri Lanka Red Cross Society (SLRCS) and UN-HABITAT (doc, 392kB).

Further reading

  • Duyne Barenstein, J (2006): Housing Reconstruction in Post earthquake Gujarat, Network Paper54. London: Overseas Development Institute (pdf, 1868kB).
  • Harvey, P (2007): Cash-based responses in emergencies, HPG Report 24. London: Overseas Development Intstitute (pdf, 382kB).
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