Khulisa was recently awarded the Ex-Post Evaluation (an evaluation carried out after the completion of a project) of Civil Society and Large-Scale Infrastructure Projects in Sri Lanka. The project – implemented by the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) and its local partners for the United States Department of State (DOS), Bureau of South and Central Affairs (SCA) – is required to ensure that public expenditures on large-scale infrastructure in Sri Lanka reflect the interests of local communities and reinforce the principles of participatory governance.
The project employed six engagement strategies or methodologies and mechanisms for civil society engagement:
- Right to information (RTI) engagement methodology;
- Parliament engagement methodology;
- Public interest litigation engagement methodology;
- Platform engagement methodology;
- Media engagement methodology; and
- Community mobilization engagement methodology.
The project facilitated the creation of ASI, a civil society network, to advocate for public participation in infrastructure planning; it also supported the involvement of ASI and its members in government and civil society-led meetings and events. Five pilot initiatives were implemented, which focused on at least one of the three thematic areas: public procurement, environmental impact assessment, and involuntary resettlement.
The goal of the ex-post evaluation of the Civil Society and Large-Scale Infrastructure Projects in Sri Lanka is to:
- Understand the actual and potential roles of civil society and public participation in the solicitation, design, and implementation of major public infrastructure projects in Sri Lanka; and
- Provide insights and recommendations that may apply to infrastructure policy in other countries in the region.