[KOICA Country-Specific Program] Strengthen Low Income Families through Women in Rural Area

(Sri Lanka) – The 3rd Year Course 

        29 June ~ 13 July, 2017, Seongnam, Republic of Korea

Eighteen(18) of women policy practitioners and administrators related to rural women¡¯s empowerment from the Democratic Socialist Republic of the Sri Lanka will participate in country-specific program¡®Strengthen Low Income Families through Women in Sri Lanka - the 3rd Year Course¡¯to be held in Seongnam, Republic of Korea, from the 29th of June to 13th of July(15 days). Entrusted by the Korea International Cooperation Agency(KOICA), the Korea Institute for Rural Development(KIRD) designed and will implement the program. The Sri Lankan delegation is composed of central and local government officials from the Ministry of Women and Child Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock Development, Ministry of Social Empowerment and Welfare, Uva Province, Eastern Province, Sabaragamuwa Province, etc.

This year¡¯s program in 2017 is the 3rd year course, the last one of the 3-multi-year country-specific program(2015-2017): Strengthen Low Income Families through Women in Rural Area. The 3rd year course aims to promote rural community development in Sri Lanka by helping women development officers and rural women to enhance the use of enabling technology, especially, information and communications technologies(ICT), thereby to build capacity of utilizing rural resources and practicing entrepreneurial skills for creating and incubating micro and small businesses in rural area.  

The course is composed of three learning modules : (1) Planning and Implementation of ICT Capacity Building for Rural Women, (2) Conducting ICT Capacity Building Curriculum Planning and Training, and (3) Case Study for ICT Capacity Building for Rural Area.  

In addition to lectures and case studies, this program includes diverse study visits and field trips for the participants. The delegation will visit Icheon Doniwool Royal Brand Rice Village, Buhyang Smart Farm, Wanju Local Food Station, and Gurye Natural Dream Park as well as study visits to the Korea Rural Development Administration, the Gyeonggi Women¡¯s Development Center, etc. Furthermore, the delegation will have opportunities to experience Korean culture and society when they tour Seoul city, Jeonju Hanok Folk Village, and Suwon Hwaseong Fortress as well as visit Korean home.  

Furthermore, the attendees are planning to devise solutions for current issues of Sri Lanka in the target learning subjects. Action Plan will be projected according to their learning of Korea¡¯s rural development experience from the course. During the program, they will find out some concrete alternatives for problem solving and then it is expected they will put their action plans into practice after returning home.