Around the world, millions of women and girls still struggle to access justice, even when laws promise equality. Globally, women have only 64 per cent of the legal rights of men. Beyond the law itself, practical barriers often stand in the way: legal fees, childcare responsibilities, stigma or fear of not being believed.In Sri Lanka, these challenges persist. Some laws still contain provisions that discriminate against women, while many women lack the information or support needed to claim their rights. When justice systems are difficult to reach, equality exists only on paper.But justice is not only achieved through the courts. It also shapes whether women can earn a living, recover from crises, or have a say in decisions affecting their lives. Legal, economic and climate justice are deeply connected, where progress in one strengthens the others.Across Sri Lanka, these connections are reflected in women’s lived experiences. Knowing your rights and being heardIn Maligakanda, one woman arrived at a legal aid camp unsure whether help was even available to her. “I always felt that women had no legal protection. I was afraid to seek legal help… But here, there was no issue. Women can get a lot of help.”   Legal aid clinics and awareness programmes supported by the United Nations, through UNDP, UNICEF and partners, are helping bring justice closer to communities. At the “Know Your Neethi” legal aid camp in Badulla, hundreds of people received free legal guidance — most of them women.Another participant, raising three children alone, received advice on resolving long-standing legal issues. “I came, received a solution and went back with a heart full of relief.”When women understand their rights and can access support without fear or cost, justice moves from paper to practice. From invisible work to economic independenceJustice also means economic opportunity. For many rural women, however, work has long been informal and undervalued. Economic justice, in this sense, is not only about income. It is about freedom, dignity and proper recognition of women’s labour.Women entrepreneurs often face limited access to finance, training and technology, while unpaid care responsibilities and social norms further restrict opportunities. Advancing economic justice means expanding access to credit and skills, strengthening market connections, and ensuring women are integrated into value chains rather than remaining invisible contributors.Across rural Sri Lanka, programmes supporting female smallholder farmers are helping shift this reality. The Smallholder Agribusiness Partnerships Programme, financed by IFAD is one example of how women are being connected with private sector partners, financing and new technologies. This enables women to participate not only as labourers, but as producers, entrepreneurs and decision-makers.   Economic justice is equally important for women rebuilding their lives after conflict and displacement. In Sri Lanka’s Northern Province, IOM and UNDP, with funding from the UN Sri Lanka SDG fund, have provided women with the knowledge and materials to start small enterprises, launching businesses such as batik production and cassava-based products. These businesses not only provide an income for women, but also create opportunities for others in their communities, opening a path to long-term growth and independence.   Justice in a changing climateClimate change adds another layer of inequality. In Sri Lanka, floods, droughts and extreme weather disproportionately affect women, particularly those dependent on farming and informal livelihoods. Climate justice means ensuring women are not only affected by climate action, but actively shaping it.   As an international UN Volunteer with UNFPA, Miki Sakiyama works to promote gender equality and youth participation in climate resilience initiatives, helping ensure women’s perspectives are reflected in climate policy and local decision-making.    At the community level, farmers across Sri Lanka are also adapting their livelihoods to a changing climate. Through climate-smart agricultural training supported by FAO, farmers like Nirosha Dilmini are adopting improved cultivation practices that strengthen productivity, food security and economic resilience, while ensuring women farmers are not left behind in the transition to more sustainable agriculture. Justice as the foundation of equalityJustice is reflected in everyday outcomes: the ability to seek help, earn a living, and shape decisions about the future.Across Sri Lanka, women’s experiences show that when systems become more accessible and inclusive, rights begin to translate into real opportunities — and lasting change.

Decades later, the visible signs of Sri Lanka’s civil conflict has gradually diminished, however, many communities continue to face quieter, long‑term challenges. In the Northern and Eastern provinces, families still experience challenges related to displacement, reintegration, limited livelihood opportunities, and gaps in social cohesion - all of which have continued to affect those who were impacted by the war.It was into this landscape that UNDP and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), launched the Expanded Support for Durable Resettlement and Reintegration (EDRR) project with funding support from the UN Sri Lanka SDG Multi Partner Trust Fund. Beginning in 2023 and extending across the Northern and Eastern provinces of Sri Lanka, the project sought to support people to restart their lives with hope.A special focus was placed on women-headed households, ex-combatants, Persons with Disabilities, young people, internally displaced persons (IDPs) and returning families. Through skills development training, livelihood assistance, counselling, and community level reintegration and infrastructure upgrading , the project helped people regain stability, strengthen community belonging, and move toward long-term peace. Among those supported, Rani’s journey stands as a powerful testament of sustainable reintegration.Rani is a single mother from Jaffna. She lost her husband and two brothers to the war, becoming the sole provider for her son, her parents, and her sister’s family. To support her family, Rani began making homemade chili powder and selling it to neighbours, followed by small export orders. However, without a grinder, production was slow, and rising cost of living forced her to take a second job as a saleswoman.In collaboration with the local government authorities and the CSO partner , Rani was identified as a beneficiary of the EDRR project. She eagerly joined the entrepreneurship and skills development training sessions, where she learned practical skills to strengthen and expand her small business. As part of the support she received, Rani was provided with a grain grinder— which immediately boosted her production capacity.With this new opportunity, she was able to build a small hut just outside her home: a clean, dedicated space where she could grind, pack, and steadily grow her business. What began as a modest effort has now started to flourish, giving Rani the confidence and tools to shape a more secure livelihood for her family.Rani explained that a key moment for her business was when her chili powder was featured at a local Children’s Day celebration and used in community meal preparation, allowing her to reach a wider group of customers. For Rani, this moment was more than just increased sales—it was a sign that her community believed in her work and the future she was building.Through this project, Rani also took part in business development training and peer group counselling. These sessions helped slowly rebuild her confidence, work through past traumas, and begin to envision her future with renewed resilience. “We have little power to choose what happens,” she said, “but we have complete power over how we respond.”   Rani’s story is only one among thousands supported by the EDRR project.By 2025, the project had reached more than 4,000 people – including over 1700 women and 1500 men. Through direct livelihood assistance, nearly 1,000 people were able to begin or strengthen income‑earning activities such as small businesses, agriculture, livestock, fisheries, home gardening, and other start‑up ventures. Through entrepreneurship and skills development training and active participation in community initiatives, the EDRR project helped individuals and families rebuild their lives. At - giving them the tools and confidence to rebuild their lives the community level, reintegration was supported through essential infrastructure such as access to clean water, upgrading counselling centres, —creating safer, more supportive environments for communities. Together, these interventions not only improved day‑to‑day well‑being but also helped communities regain a sense of stability and confidence as they worked toward durable resettlement.40% of returnees reported having community-based platforms to resolve social issues, and the active involvement of women and youth in decision-making has enhanced both economic and social resilience, demonstrating that empowering local institutions is key to sustainable, socially integrated resettlement.Across these provinces, the project recorded an exceptional overall performance of 95.8% across key indicators. While challenges remain, , the progress made has laid a foundation for communities to keep moving forward. Families like Rani’s remind us of what becomes possible when support is shaped intentionally, through partnerships that built hope, trust and confidence across all levels of society.

“There’s no issue that cannot be resolved through talking, it’s a popular saying we have. In any society, problems are bound to rise, that’s natural, but the best way to resolve these is to come together and talk it out.” Nalin Dassanayake is a long-standing employee at Sri Lanka Railways and President of the Railways’ Technical Management Officers’ Society. For him, and many others at the Ratmalana and Maligawatta Railways Workshops, these words are not abstract wisdom but a lived reality. This was not always the case. For years, there was little space for workers and management to raise individual or collective grievances, exchange views constructively, or feel heard and included. There was an absence of social dialogue. This frustration often festered into conflict and escalation, resulting in frequent service disruptions, affecting not only workers and management, but also the wider public who depend on reliable public transport.    “What’s changed? From what I can recall, the workplace forums have been functioning for about a year and a half now, and we’ve seen a lot of positive outcomes, workplace forums have really strengthened the relationship between workers and management,” says Disna Hansani, Progress Helper (Covering), Motive Power Sub Department.   Workplace forums (WPF) are being introduced as an alternate pathway for dispute resolution and prevention in the public sector. They bring together management and workers, including trade unions representatives, as well as other representatives for job categories and functions that are not organised under a trade union.  This ensures that every voice is heard and represented equally. S. Veeraiya, a mechanical technician at Sri Lanka Railways highlights what he sees as one of the most significant shift, “In the past, a problem would pass from one person to another before it was finally heard, and someone responded. Now, direct communication is bringing faster solutions.” Disna Hansani shares similar sentiments, “It’s easier to raise our concerns compared to before, not only in being able to bring up the issue, even if it takes a day or two, we now have the confidence and trust on receiving an answer through the workplace forum.”   Badra Kumari Ranaweera, Technical Management Assistant, recounts her experience “We previously received an attendance incentive, it was stopped abruptly. This was a cause for concern, especially at a time of high cost of living. But instead of resorting to strikes or conflict, we were able to resolve the issue peacefully through dialogue at the workplace forum.”   Established in 2022, the Ratmalana and Maligawatte workshops have 40 and 47-member workplace forums respectively, with women representation intentionally to ensure gender-responsive and inclusive decision making. Since its formation, the forums have addressed occupational and safety health challenges, significantly improving the working conditions, resolved remuneration issues, and strengthened coordination. They have also contributed to advocacy on gender-equitable recruitment, supporting a recent Cabinet decision to recruit women officers for key railway operational roles, from which they were previously excluded. Through its initiative "Social Dialogue for Peace and Crisis Prevention", the United Nations is working with the Government of Sri Lanka to build on the success and learnings from the pilot programme in Sri Lanka Railways and roll out workplace forums in priority public sectors including education, health, transport, ports, aviation, public administration, with over 64 WPFs already established. Implemented through ILO, UNESCO and UNFPA, the initiative is helping to address issues that cannot be resolved at workplace level, and a national forum is also in concept stage. With funding from the UN Sri Lanka SDG fund, which is supported by Canada, the European Union, the United Kingdom, the UN Secretary-General’s Peacebuilding Fund and the Joint SDG Fund, the UN is delivering training on social dialogue, conflict resolution, inclusion, and regular facilitation and guidance at the inception stage of workplace forums.   By bringing management and workers together, workplace forums are helping identify and resolve issues early, promoting constructive engagement, minimizing escalation, and ultimately enhancing public service delivery. Their benefits extend beyond workers alone to address management concerns and broader organizational challenges.“To achieve organizational goals, we need workers who are truly committed,” says K.G.S. Bandara, Chief Engineer, Motive Power Sub Department. “That commitment is hard to build through traditional management and administration methods, even rules, orders, circulars, alone. The need is a shared space where management and workers collectively develop and implement a workplan for the organization, so everyone has a sense of ownership. Workplace forums are immensely supporting this.”    “At the end of the day, the aim of everyone, workers and management, is to provide the public with a good service. The workplace forums are playing a role in achieving that”, says Badra.    The railways workshops remain loud. Din of metal clanking, voices calling out to be heard over that, energy and sparks filling the space. The seeming chaos is a regular day here. What has softened is the noise born from unexpressed frustration and unheard grievances. In its place open dialogue is taking root, slowly being built on trust, mutual respect, and hope in the belief that problems can indeed be resolved through talking.

When Cyclone Ditwah brought heavy rains and flooding to Puttalam district, Nethusha was living with his grandmother Lalitha, while his mother worked overseas, sending home every hard-earned rupee to support her family.As the waters rose, Lalitha took Nethusha to higher ground, hoping that their home would still be standing when they returned. Days later, they discovered that the water had taken everything.“When we came back, we saw that the house had been destroyed,” Lalitha recalled.In the days that followed, Nethusha grew quiet and withdrawn. He spoke less, spending long moments staring at the remains of what had once been his home. The sudden loss of his house, his routines and his sense of safety, weighed heavily on him. “When the water came, I felt so sad and scared without my mother.” he wrote in his notebook.When Lalitha later read his words, she realized how deeply the shock had affected him.   “When I read what Nethusha had written, I realized how much pain he was carrying,” she said. “Especially because his mother is not here during such a difficult time.”For Nethusha, the flood did not just wash away walls and belongings. It took away his sense of safety, and with it, his mother’s dream of a home built through sacrifice and love. Puttalam: among the hardest-hit districtsPuttalam district, where Lalitha and Nethusha live, is among the areas most severely affected by Cyclone Ditwah. More than half of the district’s population has been impacted, with floodwaters damaging homes, schools, roads and livelihoods. Recently planted paddy fields were destroyed, putting immediate pressure on food security for farming families.   Many households are still displaced. Homes have been swept away or left structurally unsafe, forcing families to remain in temporary shelters and tents while waiting for support to rebuild.“The walls of the house are cracked, and it is very risky to stay here,” Lalitha explained. “For now, a temporary tent is all we have.”   In the immediate aftermath, communities showed remarkable solidarity—sharing food, clothing and water. However, the needs remain urgent, particularly for safe shelter, education and psychosocial support.“There are very generous and supportive people in our country,” Lalitha said. “But we still don’t have a place to live.” Helping children cope after loss and disruptionChildren have been among those hardest hit by the cyclone, facing sudden displacement, interrupted schooling and emotional distress.   Through UNICEF, the United Nations in Sri Lanka is supporting children and families in Puttalam and other affected districts with learning kits, psychosocial support and temporary learning spaces. These interventions help children regain routines, process their experiences and return to learning, even as recovery continues.For Nethusha, this critical support offers stability at a time when so much remains uncertain.   A coordinated UN response on the groundThrough a coordinated response, UN agencies are supporting families with food assistance, temporary shelter and essential household items, health services and protection support, including dignity kits and psychosocial care. Support for livelihoods, early recovery and employment is also underway.   All assistance is guided by rapid needs assessments and delivered in close coordination with national and district authorities, ensuring support reaches those most in need.   Responding to urgent needsTo meet the scale of needs following Cyclone Ditwah, the United Nations and humanitarian partners launched a Humanitarian Priorities Plan, calling for US$35.3 million to support the most vulnerable people affected by the cyclone.The plan focuses on immediate, life-saving assistance, including shelter, food, health, education and protection, while supporting early recovery for families like Nethusha’s, who are still living with the consequences of the floods.As communities begin to recover, continued support is essential to ensure children can return to school, families can rebuild safely, and no one is left behind.