Establishing anticipatory action at the national level: a case study from Sri Lanka

Anticipatory action has progressed rapidly in Sri Lanka. In 2022, the first pilot project began testing this approach for floods and landslides in Nuwara Eliya; just three years later, there are now many more initiatives under way across the country, and for a broadening range of hazards. This expansion has been enabled by continuous efforts, initiated by humanitarian organizations, to incorporate anticipatory action within the country’s wider disaster-risk-management system. The results include the National Anticipatory Action Working Group and the first National Dialogue Platform, held in 2024, which set out the country’s plans for moving forwards.

Drawing on testimonies from government ministries, scientists and humanitarian partners, this videos outlines some of the factors behind these achievements in institutionalizing anticipatory action.

In 2022, World Vision Lanka began the first pilot project for anticipatory action in Sri Lanka. This took place in Nuwara Eliya District and sought to help communities living and working on the region's tea plantations to anticipate floods and landslides. This video features testimonies from the people involved in this project – community members, disaster management officials and humanitarians – who explain how this pilot project improved people's preparedness ahead of these recurrent hazards.

In Ja-Ela, Gampaha District, the threat of floods is never far away. But in 2024, as part of its URBANO project, World Vision Lanka began to test anticipatory action as a way to help communities ahead of floods. This video features testimonies from the people involved in this project – community members, disaster management officials, scientists and others – to demonstrate how anticipatory action and early warnings can help keep people safe during floods.