#UNDP Resident Representative of Sri Lanka, Ms. Azusa Kubota made a visit to Palugaswewa Cascade in Anuradhapura. This is one of her first field visits after being appointed as the Resident Representative of #UNDP in Sri Lanka. On her visit, she was able to meet the Government stakeholders in Anuradhapura district and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) which are key partners of the Climate Resilient Integrated Water Management (CRIWMP) project of #Janathakshan, funded by #UNDPSriLanka.
She discussed the importance of the local communities owning the responsibility to sustain the successful initiatives made in Palugaswewa cascade on empowering women; irrigation system rehabilitation, operation and maintenance; climate-smart agriculture and livelihoods, etc. She was very pleased to hear the success stories of women farmer groups in Palugaswewa that benefitted from the #CRIWMP. Empowering the local CSOs in CRIWMP Anuradhapura, #Janthakshan has been able to make these changes happen through community mobilization.
#UNDP Resident Representative was not only interested in the project progress in Palugaswewa, but was interested in understanding the ground realities in Sri Lanka in these difficult times and in these times of recession. This is one of her expeditions to understand the impact of current economic crisis in Sri Lanka on the rural and farmer communities and its gender parity.