PROMOTING INTERDISCIPLINARY COLLABORATION IN HEALTH RESEARCH IN DEVELOPING-COUNTRIES - LESSONS FROM THE TRIANGLE PROGRAM IN SRI-LANKA

The Triangle Programme (1989-1992) aimed at strengthening the institut ional capacity for health social science research and intervention in Sri Lank:a through the promotion of appropriate international and nati onal partnerships. First, it involved an international partnership (Tr iangle I)among two universities in the developed world, i.c. Universit y of Antwerp in Belgium and the University of Connecticut in the USA, and one university in the developing world, i.c. the University of Per adeniya, Sri Lanka. This partnership facilitated the transfer of knowl edge, experience, skills across national boundaries and the North/Sout h divide. Second, it developed a national/local partnership (Triangle 2) among the Faculties of Arts, Agriculture and Medicine at the Univer sity of Peradeniya by involving them in a joint programme of health so cial science research and training covering the entire range of activi ties from proposal development to dissemination of research results. F ocusing on the latter aspect (Triangle 2) this paper reviews the resul ts of the programme from the angle of cross-fertilization of disciplin es through their collaboration in applied health research in a develop ing country setting.