How do Sri Lankan aid workers in Vavuniya understand the term ‘humanitarian’?

14/03/2012

Following the end of the conflict in Sri Lanka in 2009, the phase of emergency humanitarian aid is coming to a close. The focus is now on moving towards longer-term development goals. The number of international staff in organisations is being reduced as programmes are increasingly managed by local staff. Against this backdrop of transition, the purpose of this qualitative research is to focus on Sri Lankan aid workers in Vavuniya, to better understand what the term ‘humanitarian’ means to them, how it shapes their identity and guides the programmes they manage. The interviewees are part of a group who will increasingly determine how aid will be provided in the future.