Documents

• Data for poverty measurement

  Poverty alleviation is the first of the United Nation’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals. However, the three decades of progress in poverty alleviation hit the COVID-19 pandemic wall (World Bank, 2022). This was further exacerbated by longstanding macroeconomic mismanagement in countries such as Sri Lanka. Counting the poor is the first step in poverty alleviation (The Economist, 2023). Deaton (2016), for example, notes that recording details of how people live, their consumption patterns, and their expenditure has long served as a tool, sometimes a political one, that aimed to bring the living conditions of the impoverished to the attention of those in authority, to evoke shock, and to advocate for reform. However, defining and measuring poverty is a complex and multifaceted task that requires careful examination of various indicators and methodologies. A clear definition of poverty is crucial as that it guides the determination of indicators for it, which leads to identifying individuals suffering from it, and eventually helps formulate effective policies to alleviate the same (Laderchi et al.,2003). This paper first draws on the literature to discuss various conceptualizations of poverty and their relative merits. This step is intended to guide policy practitioners on which types of poverty they are […]

• DRAFT: Using mobile call detail records (CDRs) and remote sensing data for spatial mapping of poverty

  By employing unsupervised and supervised machine learning techniques, we explore the feasibility of utilizing mobile call detail records (CDRs) as well as geographic information system (GIS) and remote sensing (RS) data to map poverty spatially

• Challenges to Achieve Responsive and Accountable Governance in Social Protection in Sri Lanka

  Draft: Open for Comments Social protection is a critical tool for promoting economic and social inclusion, reducing inequality and poverty, addressing vulnerabilities, and investing in human development. Social protection is viewed as nationally owned policies and instruments that provide income or in-kind support, protect from deprivations and exclusion, and empower individuals and households by increasing productivity and capabilities. Responsive and accountable governance plays a vital role in removing barriers and ensuring effective checks and balances, enabling citizens to fully benefit from social protection (UNDP, 2022). The objective of this research is to understand the challenges to achieving responsive and accountable governance in social protection, which hinder citizens from fully benefiting from social protection in Sri Lanka. This paper will draw on one of the key thematic areas identified in UNDP’s Social Protection Offer 2.0, which is responsive and accountable governance. It plays vital role in removing barriers and ensuring effective checks and balances, enabling citizens to fully benefit from social protection (ibid). In this context the challenges in governance are explained through two dimensions: 1) Mechanisms and Administrative systems dimention and 2) Supply and demand dimention. These dimensions are used to explore challenges such as lack of transparency, discrimination, mismanagement […]

• Relationship between monetary poverty and multidimensional social assistance eligibility criteria in Sri Lanka

  Draft paper, open for comments Many countries use multidimensional approaches to determine eligibility for social assistance programmes. However, monetary-based metrics remain a key tool used for measure poverty. It is crucial to understand the linkages between the two, to understand how best to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the social assistance programmes. This paper looks to explore the relationship between the 22-indicator deprivation score used in Sri Lanka to determine eligibility for its key social assistance programme, Aswesuma, and the national poverty line, measured using per capita consumption expenditure, drawing on a nationally representative survey. It concludes that the deprivation score has a positive, but weak to moderate, relationship with expenditure-based poverty, and discusses implications for policymakers. Suggested citation: Hurulle, G., Amarasinghe, T., Habaragamuwa, N. & Galpaya, H. (2023) Relationship between monetary poverty and multidimensional social assistance eligibility criteria in Sri Lanka. LIRNEasia.

• Sri Lanka Social Safety Net Survey: Survey Methodology Note

  Sri Lanka Social Safety Net Survey: Survey Methodology Note

• RFP: Sri Lanka Social Safety Net – Qualitative Study

  Sri Lanka Social Safety Net – Qualitative Study

• Social Safety Nets: Reform in Sri Lanka (Presentation)

  Slides presented at the Advocata Institute’s #ReformNow conference on 5 August 2022

• Social safety nets – the way forward

  Launch of NMSJ Common Minimum Programme – 21 June 2022

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Events

• Research Launched: Social Safety Nets and the State of Poverty in Sri Lanka
  LIRNEasia held an event titled Social Safety Nets and the State of Poverty in Sri Lanka on Wednesday 7 June 2023  in Colombo.
• Social protection reform in Sri Lanka discussed at Advocata ReformNow Conference
  The fragmented social protection system in Sri Lanka has been in need of reform for many years.
• LIRNEasia research on social safety nets discussed on AdvoChats
  Gayani Hurulle discussed LIRNEasia's research on social safety nets in Sri Lanka on an 'AdvoChat' organized by the Advocata Institute.

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People

Sukitha Bandaranayake

Shenali Bamaramannage

Helani Galpaya

Gayani Hurulle

Tharaka Amarasinghe

Blogs and Updates

• Aswesuma to Prajashakthi: considerations for future social protection programmes
  This article was carried in the Daily Mirror on 17 October 2024 on International Eradication of Poverty Day Poverty in Sri Lanka has increased significantly with the onset of COVID-19 and the macroeconomic crisis.
• Senior Research Manager Gayani Hurulle participates at CA Sri Lanka’s Annual Economic and Tax Symposium
  Taxation is a critical tool for sustainable development, playing a vital role in reducing poverty, ensuring food security, and enhancing social protection.
• Call for Proposals: FutureWORKS Asia: Towards a sustainable and inclusive future of work in Asia (cycle 1)
  LIRNEasia is inviting proposals for gender-responsive, policy-relevant applied research projects that contribute to a sustainable and inclusive future of work.
• Data for poverty measurement
  Poverty alleviation is the first of the United Nation’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
• DRAFT: Using mobile call detail records (CDRs) and remote sensing data for spatial mapping of poverty
  By employing unsupervised and supervised machine learning techniques, we explore the feasibility of utilizing mobile call detail records (CDRs) as well as geographic information system (GIS) and remote sensing (RS) data to map poverty spatially
• Challenges to Achieve Responsive and Accountable Governance in Social Protection in Sri Lanka
  Draft: Open for Comments Social protection is a critical tool for promoting economic and social inclusion, reducing inequality and poverty, addressing vulnerabilities, and investing in human development.
• Relationship between monetary poverty and multidimensional social assistance eligibility criteria in Sri Lanka
  Draft paper, open for comments Many countries use multidimensional approaches to determine eligibility for social assistance programmes.
• Research Launched: Social Safety Nets and the State of Poverty in Sri Lanka
  LIRNEasia held an event titled Social Safety Nets and the State of Poverty in Sri Lanka on Wednesday 7 June 2023  in Colombo.
• Sri Lanka Social Safety Net Survey: Survey Methodology Note
  Sri Lanka Social Safety Net Survey: Survey Methodology Note
• Reimagining Sri Lanka’s social safety nets
  In our blogpost with Citra Labs, we explore the role digital and data can play in improving the efficiency and effectiveness of social safety nets (social assistance) in Sri Lanka.
• සුබසාධන ප්‍රතිලාභ බෙදාහැරීම සමෘද්ධි බැංකු ඒකාධිකාරයක් නොවිය යුත්තේ ඇයි?
  සමෘද්ධි දෙපාර්තමේන්තුවේ අධ්‍යක්ෂ ජනරාල්වරයා විසින් 2022 අගෝස්තු 29 වැනි දින නිකුත් කරන ලද චක්‍රලේඛය අනුව, ජ්‍යෙෂ්ඨ පුරවැසියන්, ආබාධිත පුද්ගලයන් (PWDs) සහ වකුගඩු රෝගීන් සඳහා මාසික මුදල් ආධාර ලබාදීම් 2022 සැප්තැම්බර් මාසයේ සිට සමෘද්ධි බැංකු හරහා කළ යුතුය.
• Samurdhi banks should not have monopoly on distributing welfare benefits
  (Note: This was originally published in the Daily FT) The Director General of the Department of Samurdhi released a circular on 29 August stating that monthly cash transfers to senior citizens, persons with disabilities (PWDs), and kidney patients must be administered through Samurdhi banks from September 2022.
• RFP: Sri Lanka Social Safety Net – Qualitative Study
  Sri Lanka Social Safety Net - Qualitative Study
• Social protection reform in Sri Lanka discussed at Advocata ReformNow Conference
  The fragmented social protection system in Sri Lanka has been in need of reform for many years.
• Improving social protection in Sri Lanka: LIRNEasia research on TV
  I was invited to speak on Social Safety Nets in Sri Lanka on ‘The People’s Platform’ a 45 minute live TV programme on NewsFirst.
• Social Safety Nets: Reform in Sri Lanka (Presentation)
  Slides presented at the Advocata Institute’s #ReformNow conference on 5 August 2022
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