Samaranayake, Mallika R.

AB: This report describes and analyses a project established by the Small Arms Survey in Switzerland and the Regional Centre for Strategic Studies (RCSS) in Sri Lanka. The project uses qualitative methods- specifically PRA (Participatory Rural Appraisal), PUA (Participatory Urban Appraisal), and RRA (Rapid Rural Appraisal) - to measure risk and vulnerability in three communities in the Vavuniya district, affected by small arms related violence.

Both government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as well as donor organizations have expressed a great interest in participatory approaches to development in Sri Lanka; one of the results of this was the establishment of the PID/PRA (Participatory Interaction in Development/Participatory Rural Appraisal) Network in 1994.