A collective leadership training for 40 members of eight DIRC steering committees was held in Kalutara under NPC’s IMPACT project.

Each DIRC has a steering committee of five members to assist its coordinator to organise and implement DIRC activities in keeping with the objectives of the project.

The remaining eight DIRCs will have a similar programme in October.

The outbound training was aimed at improving the leadership capacity of the steering committee to enable them to run the DIRCs more efficiently in preparation for the next two years of work.

There were also sessions on monitoring and evaluation and project follow up activities as well as training on how to use social media and websites and the Internet to promote the reconciliation work done by the DIRCs. The problem of cyber crime was also discussed.

The physical activities involved building a boat from rope and other materials and putting it on the water and swinging across the river on a rope. The participants learnt about leadership, teamwork, building trust, understanding and listening to others, time management and collective decision making.

The DIRC members were happy to take part in outdoor activities, which were a contrast to the usual sit down meetings. They enjoyed being outdoors and the relaxed atmosphere, and they recommitted to leadership of their DIRCs.