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Our Projects · Disaster Risk Management & Ecosystem Restoration

Rain CommunitiesSri Lanka

Communautés de pluie – Sri Lanka

With the Lanka Rain Water Harvesting Forum, rural communities in Kurunegala District are securing water, restoring ecosystems and strengthening farming.

OngoingDisaster Risk Management & Ecosystem Restoration2025–2028 (three years)
© LRWHF
WhereKurunegala District, Sri Lanka
When2025–2028 (three years)
WithLanka Rain Water Harvesting Forum (LRWHF), communities and local actors
Rainfall≈ 1,712 mm a year in Sri Lankanational average, World Bank; local figure to add

Targets

  • 170household rainwater tanks of 8 m³
  • 30public rainwater tanks of 30 m³
  • 60sanitation facilities
  • more than20,000community members, 40% of them women

The Challenge

Recurring droughts and floods have weakened communities' ability to manage their water in Sri Lanka. Droughts reduce supply and increase pollution levels. Floods contaminate drinking water sources and damage the reservoirs used for irrigation. For rural families in Kurunegala District, this puts health and livelihoods at risk. The project helps communities become more resilient to climate change.

Average monthly rainfall and temperature in Sri Lanka, 1991–2020
Rain in Sri Lanka: about 1,712 mm a year, mostly two monsoons: May to September and October to January. Source: World Bank Climate Change Knowledge Portal (observed 1991–2020) and World Bank average precipitation.

What We Do

  • Build up knowledge of the area with communities, and agree an action plan with all the actors involved.
  • Build 170 household rainwater tanks of 8 m³ and 30 public tanks of 30 m³, so that families can store safe water close to home.
  • Build 60 sanitation facilities.
  • Install 105 infiltration and groundwater recharge systems, to slow runoff and refill aquifers.
  • Support 80 families with agroecological production, and create 20 nurseries for trees and plants.
  • Train communities, and share good practice and research results across the region and internationally.

Progress So Far

  • In 2025, an IRHA mission travelled to Sri Lanka to launch the project and follow it up.
  • to verify: first results for 2025–2026, e.g. participatory mapping filmed by LRWHF in March 2026

Expected Results

  • Knowledge of the area is shared by all stakeholders, and an action plan is put into practice.
  • Water resources are secured and easier for communities to reach.
  • Agricultural yields improve and farming families earn more.
  • Communities have stronger knowledge and technical skills.
  • More than 20,000 people benefit, 40% of them women.

බිඳෙන් බිඳ කළේ පිරේ.

“Drop by drop, the pot fills.”

Sinhala proverbproverb: wording and translation to check with our local partner

On the Ground

Swipe or use the arrows, and click on a photo to enlarge it.

Water pond in Sri Lanka · © LRWHF
IRHA Alliance member in Sri Lanka · © LRWHF
Inauguration of a rainwater harvesting system in Sri Lanka · © LRWHF
Hospital staff next to a rainwater tank, Northern Province, Sri Lanka · © LRWHF

Partners and Funders

  • Implementing partner: Lanka Rain Water Harvesting Forum (LRWHF), a member of the IRHA Alliance. LRWHF also hosts SARNET, the South Asia Rainwater Network.
  • Funder: Fédération genevoise de coopération (FGC)

Resources

Project factsheet to upload (see notes in the page file)

From Our Blog Archive

archived posts: to re-publish on the new site, then update these links

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