JULY 2005 FIELD TRIP: SRI LANKA

By: Nimmi Gowrinathan
OpUSA Director of South Asia Programs

Sri Lankan Government
Ministry of Relief, Reconstruction and Rehabilitation

With Ministry officials, shipment procedures were discussed. When OPUSA shipments arrive, the Ministry can assure that TAFRON and the UDM waive taxes imposed. Currently, the RRR Ministry is engaged in finding means of recycling debris into usable materials for reconstruction. The water purification tablets initially distributed post-tsunami are not as effective as desired, and more consistent water purification system is necessary. Deep sea fishing should be encouraged and promoted, as offshore fishing has become over saturated, and yields a negligible income. Several NGO’s have made promises of funding, that have not yet materialized in any of the affected areas.

Preschool Project
Molligoda, Paiyagal

Dr. Pat Clark, a member of the February Play Therapy Team, has raised nearly $20,000 for the reconstruction of a preschool in Southern Sri Lanka. The teacher, Mrs. Champa, purchased the land with her savings at a discounted price of 20,000Rs/perch. The area has been cleared, and building started on July 7 at 6:36am (an auspicious time for Buddhists). She expects a total of 90 students to enroll in the new preschool, expected to open within 3 months. She generally charges 100 Rs/month/child, to provide food for the children, though she makes allowances for those who cannot afford the fee. Recently a Jewish Community Preschool in Winterpark, Florida has agreed to sponsor the preschool, and provide school supplies.

Operation Kalladi: Village Project
Tamil Rehabilitation Organization

Operation USA intends to partner with NECORD to provide the inhabitants of Kalladi with better access roads, a small health center, wells, and a revolving fund to initiate a microfinance project. The preschool will be linked to the community center, to ensure that the community center is used by the village population. A site visit by OPUSA staff assured that the project was progressing in a timely fashion, despite disruptions due to embargos enacted in the district. Temporary housing has been provided for all residents, and construction of permanent housing, the community center, and preschool have commenced.

In meetings, our local partner NGO expressed a desire to include pharmaceutical supplies in the material support provided by Operation USA. They also expressed that Operation USA was the most efficient and reliable NGO in transferring promised funds. Operation USA will also partner with IMHO to fund two full time physicians in Kalladi ($30,000) for the duration of one year, as well as will VanniTech, which will provide 5 computers for the village as well as 2 trainers for the duration of three years.

Sarvodaya

The organization has been successful in meeting immediate needs in 226 villages nationwide, as well as restarting livelihoods. Development for 10 villages in the Matara district funded by Operation USA have been somewhat slow to be implemented (5% of the grant has been spent to date), though regular progress reports will be provided to Operation USA. Sarvodaya has requested two areas of additional support, Environmental Management/Ecological Support and Disaster Management Trainings. As the largest civil society in the country, they interface with SL Government Ministries in trying to develop programs which not only effectively deal with current needs of the population, but also provide training which enables self-sufficiency and preparedness. They are currently hosting a team conducting follow-up Trauma Training in Tsunami-affected areas.

Project Galle

The organizations projects are well coordinated with local government officials. Operation USA funds have been disbursed in grants ranging from US $156 to $288, to qualified applicants. Project Galle has identified 7 areas of further development, with the top two priorities identified as Permanent Housing and Community Development. Locals who received grants from Project Galle who were interviewed by OPUSA staff had very positive assessments of the impact of their programs.

Schools and Orphanage Project
Batticaloa

Individuals as well as local elementary school raised funds to support orphanages and schools in the eastern coast of Sri Lanka, which house both war-affected and tsunami-affected children. Several of the homes visited by OPUSA staff were in a state of disrepair, and had difficulty receiving funds to meet basic nutrition needs with the additional burden of children orphaned by the tsunami. Those in charge of the homes listed needs from musical instrument for mentally ill children, to basic bedding needs, and generators for the daily power outages in the area. The funds have been divided between 6 homes, based on the July field trip needs assessment.