CIRDAP Official Channel 60d ago

The Webinar on CIRDAP-HARTI collaborative project 'Women and Youth Empowerment Programme for Sustainable Inclusive Rural Development in Sri Lanka: A Bottom-Up Approach’ was organized on April 23, 2026. Sagarika Hitihamu (PhD Reading), Research Fellow, Head, Rural Development Division, Hector Kobbekaduwa Agrarian Research and Training Institute (HARTI) Sri Lanka embraced as the esteemed speaker of the webinar. The Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific (CIRDAP)-supported project aimed to develop a community-driven empowerment programme providing sustainable livelihood opportunities for women and youth. Specific objectives included identifying existing livelihood issues, identifying solutions for improvement, developing and implementing a community-driven empowerment plan, and evaluating post-implementation empowerment levels. The study adopted a pragmatic research paradigm integrating qualitative and quantitative approaches with criteria-based evaluative design ensuring transparent participant selection. Initially, 32 women were identified as potential beneficiaries through community consultations. Following comprehensive assessment using weighted scoring based on entrepreneurial experience, motivation, resource availability, economic need, business viability, and willingness to participate, 22 women demonstrating highest entrepreneurial potential were selected as final beneficiaries. Each received financial assistance of Rs. 35,000 to initiate or strengthen business activities, along with technical support, capacity-building, and market linkage development. #WOMEN #womenempowerment #inclusivegrowth #inclusivedevelopment #ruraldevelopment #cirdap #HARTI #srilanka #youthempowerment #agriculture