Governance In Plantation Sector Case of Community Development Forum of CARE Sri Lanka Plantation Program

Dr. Gamini Hitinayake & Chaaminda JayasingheInternational Community Governance SymposiumJAIC Hilton04-07-2013

Significance of Plantation Sector

• 15.87% foreign earnings, contribute 15.6% to the GDP in agriculture or 3% to the country’s GDP

• 310,000 direct employees and residence over 01 million people (5% of population)

• Women constitute the major labor force in plantations. 42% of the total female work force in the country

• 68% of the women in agriculture are involved in

plantations

The History • Introduced in 1800s by British planters with contract

labors brought from south India.

• Legislative framework was introduced to maintained total institutions specify the responsibility planters for the working & living conditions of the workers

• Plantations were owned by foreign companies till 1970, then nationalized in 1975 and again privatized in 1995

• .

• All the Indian origin plantation communities were granted full Citizenship in 2003

• Majority of the estate communities living in workers quarters or “ Line Rooms” over generations without any land rights

• Strong trade union movement started in 1920s

• Population with unique identity and culture with less exposure with mainstream societies

The Problem- Results of Exclusion• The quality of Health, Education, Legal services still are not

on par with mainstream society • Legal barriers for plantation communities to access services

from Local government institutions ( e.g. Article 33 of Pradehiya Sabha act)

• Lack of Financial, human & physical resources allocated by the government for plantation sector for service provision

• Majority of plantation communities do not access services

in their mother language

• Lack of community led structures for demanding government services

• Limited opportunities to expose and develop linkages with outside institutions and societies

• Negative influence of politically manipulated trade unions of plantations

• Lack of accountability of political leaders and government officials

• Geographical issues such as Isolation, physical barriers, difficulties to access, crowded surrounding- line houses

• Plantation communities do not enjoy full services from Public Administrative system & Local governance system as other mainstream communities.

• Plantation communities still perceive estate management as service provider due to generations of estate administrative system led by private companies

10

Need

Based

Need Based

Need Based but a transition from

need based to right based

A participatory management approach

Initiate Right Based Approach programming

Towards fulfilling rights & building relationships

SHAKTHI, SECURE & TEA (2000-2005) - Focusing on social welfare, micro finance & productivity

Improvement in business, society & environment

Relationship improvement - Community Development Forum (CDF) concept

Impact – Rights and Entitlements of estate communities

PROGRAM EVOLUTION

CAP (1987) - Social mobilization, training, and income improvement of EWs

TEAM (1996-2001) - Social mobilization training, saving & credit income generation

PRP Pilot & WET (1999-2001) - Participatory Teams (PT)

EIDHR, NSA, PCDP, PCEP & After-TEA (2006/7)

TEA-CUP (1989) - To increase income of 5000 marginal tea small holders in Kandy District

Community Development

Forum

Meets Monthly

CDF Advisory Committee

Estate Manager

Estate Staff

Estate Medical Assistant

Welfare Officer

Chief Clark

Midwife

Field Officer

Village Reps

CDF Office Bearers

CDF has four Executive Committee Members

President – Chairs the meetings

Vice President- Who chairs the meetings in the Absence of President

Secretary- Minute recording, convene meetings

Treasurer- Looks after the Accounts

Community Reps of Division B

Community Reps of Division

A

Village Reps

RDS Representative

s

Service Providers State &

Private

EWHCSKovil Committee TU

Leaders

Sports Club

CSA

Funeral Aid Society

Women Society Community

Reps of Division C

ALLA PLACE

FOR Community Development Forum

CDF- Place for AllCDF meeting in Fetresso Estate. 2011

• Bring all the actors of estate in to one forum

• Regular discussions and collective decision making related to social development and industry

• Demanding & Accessing services & Resources from

outside organizations • Provide space for private sectors and government

institutions & Communities to collaborate for plantation community development.

Community Development Forum

• Changing confrontational relationships among different actors of the estate & enhance social cohesion

• Facilitating external service provision through community awareness & linkage development process

• Coordinating estate youth for development work

Achievements • Established 18 Community Development Forums within last

five years

• So far 04 CDFs registered as Rural Development Societies under divisional government administrative institutions

• Implemented over 130 community led development projects leveraging resources from government and non government institutions

• Recently leverage 03 million rupees from Watawala plantation PLC for replicating another 04 new community Development Forums

• Established linkages with government administration institutions for accessing citizenship rights

• Increased women and youth representation in community structures

• Established good relationship with estate management and leverage resources for Community Development

• Influenced private actors to invest on underlying causes of social injustice beyond philanthropy

Replicating the Model

• CDF should be replicated due to the absence of broad mandated structures in the estates

• Regular discussion and decision making in to common forum as conflict management tool

• Community participation in business process, breaking traditional hierarchical management system

• Increase opportunities for community members while ensuring the viability of the estate

Challenges • Political influences due to trade union interests • Legal barriers

• Limited resources allocated for the plantation sector by the government

• Lack of awareness of the community members of rights and entitlements

Recommendations

• Study CDF experience on managing unique power structure mainly dominated by estate management & Trade Unions

• Include dynamics of Community Development Forums in to any governance model introduce to estate sector

• Explore possibilities of revising Rural Development Society model for estate communities based on holistic development experiences of CDF

• Explore avenues for formalizing CDF model as a legitimate village development model

gaminisbh@gmail.comcjayasinghe@co.care.org

Thank You..!