a case study of Sri Lanka Morais, Soosaiappu Neavis creator Ahmad, Mokbul Morshed Chairperson Routray, Jayant Kumar Examination Committee Mithulananthan, N. Examination committee Soparth Pongquan Examination Committee Distance Education Modernization Project (DEMP), Open University of Sri Lanka Scholarship donor The Ministry of Education of Sri Lanka Scholarship donor text series technical report th Pathum Thani, Thailand Asian Institute of Technology 2009 continuing eng 108 p. : ill. This dissertation examined the role of NGO - led microfinance in improving the lives of conflict affected people. The key question explored in this study was {u201E}to what extent NGO - led microfinance cont ributes to key development goals of reducing aid dependency, rebuilding livelihoods, and promoting social cohesion, in a politically evolving context. The study attempted to answer the question based on a field research in the Vanni area of Sri Lanka. In exploring the key question, it focused on the multilevel factors that influenced the development process in that area. The study was mainly based on qualitative data and information collected at household level. Focused group discussions, semi - structured in terviews and observations were also employed in this research. In the household level analysis, the study found that NGO - driven microfinance had positively contributed to improve food security, regain productive assets and build resilience to recurring conflict related vulnerabilities. However, it also found that sustained progress was hampered by a number of factors at different levels, namely organizations that mediate microfinance related outcomes, and political and economic institutions in that context . Unfavorable economic policies, rigid financial control by the armed non - state actors, strict governance system and bureaucratic aid channeling arrangements had undermined the programme impacts and had constrained the growth of microfinance. The study concluded that developmental interventions had limited scope to make sustained socio - economic impact in a context of a complex political emergency. This study argues that development interventions in complex political emergencies need to take into consideration the broader political processes in that context A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Regional and Rural Development Planning Thesis (Ph.D.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2009 Microfinance Sri Lanka Asian Institute of Technology. http://203.159.5.9/ait-thesis/detail.php?q=B00722 http://203.159.5.9/ait-thesis/detail.php?q=B00722 110315 20260818170031.0