Sri Lanka, May 2009. After decades of fighting, one of the longest protracted civil wars in history was declared to be over. At the same time, the island-nation continued work to recover from massive country-wide devastation from the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami. Every part of Sri Lanka felt the effects of the Tsunami. Over 30,000 were reported dead, with 400,000 internally displaced adding to the hundreds of thousands displaced from decades of fighting in the North East of the island.

For those that survived the last days of war, the return to normalcy has been long and challenging. Today, most of this population lives in resettled villages across the North and East of the island in heavily militarized zones. With a high population (nearly 90,000) of war widows and women-headed households, damaged roads and schools, limited freedom of movement, and high prices – these communities are still struggling to survive, even years after the cessation of the war.

Operation USA is working with community-based organizations in these areas to meet the immediate survival needs as well as to develop sustainable long-term programming in education, health, and livelihoods-with a focus on programs to support women’s development.