The Owner Driven Housing Assistance (ODHA) scheme is a donor and government supported initiative to help construct housing for internally displaced persons (IDPs) returning to their original areas of residence after the end of the Sri Lankan Civil War in 2009. While ODHA is a commendable initiative for rebuilding the lives of those displaced by war, available evidence indicates an increase in household debt among the beneficiaries of such housing schemes and their vulnerability to livelihood insecurities after resettlement. Based on an analysis of the socio-economic status of ODHA beneficiaries in the northern Sri Lankan districts of Mullaitivu, Kilinochchi and Jaffna, this paper concludes that the financing modality of the housing programme has had a catalytic effect on indebtedness among beneficiaries. An inadequate understanding of the social, economic and cultural contexts that define the lives of beneficiaries on the part of donors and implementers appears to be contributing to unintended and negative repercussions of housing assistance. This paper illustrates how post-war participatory development projects such as the ODHA scheme can further exacerbate the vulnerability of war-affected populations, unless donors and policy makers have a holistic understanding of the varying contexts that define the experiences of those receiving development assistance.

中文翻译：

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“生命与债务”：评估斯里兰卡冲突后参与式住房重建的影响

业主驱动的住房援助 (ODHA) 计划是一项捐助者和政府支持的举措，旨在帮助在 2009 年斯里兰卡内战结束后返回原居住地的国内流离失所者 (IDP) 建造住房。 虽然 ODHA 是一项重建因战争流离失所者生活的值得称道的举措，现有证据表明，此类住房计划的受益人的家庭债务增加，而且他们在重新安置后容易受到生计不安全的影响。本文基于对斯里兰卡北部穆莱蒂武、基利诺奇和贾夫纳地区 ODHA 受益人的社会经济状况的分析，得出结论，住房计划的融资方式对受益人的债务具有催化作用。对社会认识不足，从捐助者和执行者的角度来说，决定受益者生活的经济和文化背景似乎正在助长住房援助的意外和负面影响。本文说明了诸如 ODHA 计划之类的战后参与式发展项目如何进一步加剧受战争影响人口的脆弱性，除非捐助者和决策者对定义接受发展援助者经历的不同背景有全面的了解。