This review of UNHCR’s programme for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Sri Lanka was conducted from 6-14 September 2001 to gain an insight into UNHCR’s policies and performance in the country. It was also the first joint review of a UNHCR programme by DFID and UNHCR’s Evaluation and Policy Analysis Unit (EPAU). EPAU’s participation in this review was at the invitation of DFID, an expression of its support for UNHCR’s new evaluation policy, which emphasises the value of joint reviews.
In its Global Appeal 2001, UNHCR states that its programme in Sri Lanka provides assistance to some 412,400 internally displaced persons (IDPs), at an annual cost of US$6.8 million. The total number of IDPs in Sri Lanka is estimated at around 800,000. The programme's objectives as set out in UNHCR's Global Appeal 2001 were:
- to improve access to national protection and humanitarian assistance for IDPs in the north and north-east of Sri Lanka
- to minimise internal displacement and provide alternatives to flight from of instability;
- to stabilise displaced communities and provide conditions for solutions;
- to facilitate the return and reintegration of displaced populations, with particular attention to vulnerable groups;
- to advocate for the implementation of policies that protect the rights of the displaced and other victims of the conflict; and,
- to extend the capacity of the government, NGOs and displaced communities to respond to displacement and bring about lasting solutions.