OCHA Situation Report
Sri Lanka
7 - 14 November 2005


Source: UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

Overall Situation

The main opposition, the United National Party (UNP) has pledged to 
extend a section of the southern coastal belt towards the ocean by 
filling it, as a protective measure against a tsunami threat if a UNP 
administration comes into power.

The rain in Trincomalee in the northeast is getting heavier and some 
areas are experiencing flooding. Reports indicate that some camps are 
flooded, however it is not currently a major problem and no significant 
displacement was reported.

In Kuchchaveli, Trincomalee the Norwegian Refugee Council provided 53 
families with emergency items (food and NFI) when they were displaced 
from their site/shelters on 4 November.

Hundreds of dead sardine fish are landing on the shores of the Inner 
Harbour of Trincomalee (considered a fish trap). The reason is 
apparently a lack of oxygen in the water (source: Fisheries Dept). There 
is still a need to confirm the cause of death and the possible 
implications. Central Government authorities were informed as well as 
the Deputy Provincial Director of Heath Services (DPDHS) and Ministry of 
Health Town and Gravets to take steps to address the problem and 
investigate.

Main challenges and response

In Akurala in the south a transitional shelter site housing 14 families 
is in a low lying area and has a blocked drainage system. As a result 
the site experienced flooding during recent rains. Various groups have 
looked into the matter and deduced the issue is too large to handle, 
Project Galle being one of them. According to the TAP (Transitional 
Accommodation Project) in Galle a solution is to relocate the 
settlement.

On 7 November tsunami-affected beneficiaries in Ambalantota protested 
against an allocation of permanent houses built by "Samadi foundation". 
The protesters alleged that a priest had given houses to people other 
than tsunami-affected beneficiaries. An inquiry into the matter is being 
conducted by government authorities.

Coordination and common services

Habitat for Humanity International has completed 300 houses in Galle and 
has requested HIC to map the information

HIC is working closely with TAFREN in developing the CAPS (Coordination 
And Planning System) Database for Management of Information.

OCHA and HIC are in the process of verifying and finalizing the 
transitional shelter site list in Galle district with TAP, which is to 
be released soon. Based on this list, interested NGOs would be assigned 
for upgrading and the care and maintenance of shelter sites which are 
not managed by any organization. Meanwhile SewaLanka, Project Galle, 
AMURT International and World Vision will continue to look after their 
own transitional shelter sites.

On the issue of disaster management OCHA has collected information on 
areas most vulnerable to flooding in Killinochchi to be mapped.

The UNDP Disaster Management Centre (DMC) attached to the District 
Secretariat-Matara, carried out a one day workshop on disaster awareness 
and emergency evacuation plans for stake holders on 8 November.

Under the UNDP Civil Society Strengthening Programme 68 NGOs from 
Matara, 20 from Dickwell, 38 from Devinuwara and 42 CBOs (community 
based organisations) from Weligama are to benefit. An awareness program 
on disaster management was conducted by the Sri Lanka Air Force in the 
AGA Division of Hambantota on 8 November for the general public.

Food security

Owing to the present rainy season and upcoming election there is a 
slight set back in WFP's Food for Work Program. People are reluctant to 
work under the current environment and WFP is in the process of 
encouraging the Divisional Secretaries to start the identified projects 
as soon as possible.

>From 1 October WFP's Vulnerable Group Feeding (VGF) replaced General 
Food Distribution (GFD), which scaled down targeted distribution to 
350,000 beneficiaries. The programme will continue till 31 December 
2005. VGF food ration per person and per day is composed of 400g of 
cereals, 60g of pulses, 20g of sugar, 20g of oil and 40g of corn soya 
blend (CSB). From October to December 2005, WFP is planning to 
distribute 17,485 tons of mixed food commodities under VGF.

As part of WFP's regular food aid monitoring, beneficiary households and 
final distribution points, including multi- purpose cooperative 
societies' retail outlets, schools and clinics were visited on a daily 
basis in EMOP districts during the 18 October ? 29 October 2005 
reporting period.

WFP is currently providing fortified CSB to nearly 100,000 women and 
children in health clinics under its Emergency Operation. WFP so far has 
provided 444 food-for-work projects in tsunami-affected areas. From 
October to December 2005 WFP is planning to distribute 10,967 tons of 
mixed food commodities to some 183,000 beneficiaries (36,600 
participants) under Food For Work. Around 15 per cent of these projects 
are complete. WFP school-feeding activities currently cover 397 schools 
(106,000 school children) in tsunami-affected areas but were suspended 
in Muslim Schools during Ramadan.

Health

The Healthcare and Nutrition Ministry signed a Memorandum of 
Understanding with Italy's Alicei and Comune di Bologna to implement a 
mobile paediatric clinic in Jaffna for the tsunami-affected. The clinic 
is composed of a glass-resin cell installed on a steel trailer and is 
equipped with an extensible examination coach, angle shelf, one large 
closet with shutters, a bathroom with a wash basin and mirror, 
electrical power generators and waterworks with water reservoirs.

In Matara WFP has selected 17,945 beneficiaries from four 
tsunami-affected divisions for the VGF programme which is to commence 
after the election.

Water and sanitation

Plans are underway to move the tsunami train wreckage in Peraliya, Galle 
to the Kahawa train station close to Peraliya, Hikkaduwa to clear the 
main drainage system which is being blocked by the train in its present 
location near the railway track.

Non-food items and shelter

The tsunami housing construction progress for Galle district is as follows:
|-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------|
|DS Division|   No of   |  Housing  |  Work in  | Completed |Handed Over|
|           |  Houses   |Requirement| Progress  |           |  to the   |
|           |  Damaged  |           |           |           |Beneficiari|
|           |within 100m|           |           |           |    es     |
|-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------|
|Akmeemana  |     0     |     0     |    239    |     7     |     7     |
|-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------|
|Ambalangoda|    535    |    469    |    65     |     0     |     0     |
|-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------|
|Balapitiya |    713    |    654    |    102    |    54     |     5     |
|-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------|
|Bentota    |    70     |    70     |    10     |    49     |    49     |
|-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------|
|Galle Four |   1258    |   1257    |    65     |     0     |     0     |
|Gravets    |           |           |           |           |           |
|-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------|
|Hikkaduwa  |   1877    |   1877    |    798    |    144    |    26     |
|-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------|
|Habaraduwa |    845    |    752    |    183    |     0     |     0     |
|-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------|
|Imaduwa    |  [
]   |  [
]   |    10     |    30     |     0     |
|-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------|
|TOTAL      |   5298    |   5079    |   1472    |    284    |    87     |
|-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------|

Source: THRU Galle District, (09.11.05)


Eighty eight permanent houses in Walahanduwa watte & Imaduwa in Galle 
were officially presented to tsunami-affected families, on the 10 of 
November by the Minister of Urban Development and Water Supply. The 
houses were financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs through funds 
received by well wishers and expatriates living abroad and in foreign 
missions and were constructed by the State Development and Construction 
Corporation. So far 288 such houses in Moderawila Kalutara, 100 in 
Walahanduwa Galle, 24 in Kesbapana Galle, 300 in Periyaneelaweli Ampara 
and 152 in Pallawakkulam Trincomalee have been built under the direction 
of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

In Ampara, upgrading of transitional shelter sites on a divisional level 
is ongoing with special emphasis on preparations for the upcoming 
monsoon. Lead agencies are taking responsibility in their respective 
divisions. Caritas confirmed upgrading would be completed by the end of 
November and 60 per cent of the upgrading of (Women's Development 
Center) WDC shelters is complete. Islamic Relief has upgraded near to 
100 per cent of its shelters. GOAL's shelters do not require major 
upgrading, but minor upgrading where necessary and have completed around 
70 per cent of its upgrading. GOAL is also upgrading the shelters of 
Shadow, Humanitarian Development Organisation (HDO) and the Foundation 
for Co-Existence (FCE), local NGOs and is mainly working on the 
upgrading of roofs and walls plus sandbagging to avoid floods. The 
German Red Cross (GRC) is not building or upgrading shelters and are 
currently working on contingency planning, particularly water and 
sanitation issues through GRC outreach teams and is planning to start 
with upgrading activities next week, focusing on 140 shelters which have 
been prioritized. OXFAM GB shelters do not require major upgrading and 
has upgraded 50 per cent of its shelters, mainly by providing additional 
cajan for the roofs. ZOA has reported that 60 per cent of its shelter 
upgrading of occupied shelters is complete and the rest will be upgraded 
before the end of November. IOM has upgraded around 80 per cent of its 
transitional shelters. The upgrading for World Vision is ongoing.

UNHCR is phasing out as lead agency in the shelter sector in 
Killinochchi and handing matters over to the GA. UNHCR in Jaffna has 
distributed 300 tarpaulins to IDPs with poor roofs, tracking what has 
been given out in the past and checking beneficiary lists with what is 
on the ground.

In Matara beneficiaries living in transition shelters are willing to 
move into rented houses to overcome difficulties associated with heavy 
rain if they get rental payments until they get a new house. In the 
Matara, Dickwella, Devinuwara and Weligama DS Divisions the total 
permanent housing requirement is 2,985 houses, work is in progress in 
1,162 houses while 15 houses are complete. However the completed houses 
are yet to be handed over to beneficiaries.

IOM and TAP state that the tsunami-affected Matara, Dickwella, 
Devinuwara and Weligama DS Divisions have a total of 1,250 transitional 
shelter clusters housing 1,239 families with 4,342 persons.

The transitional housing requirement of 1,696 has been met in the 
tsunami-affected divisions of Tangalle, Ambalantota, Hambantota and 
Tissamaharama in Hambantota district. The status of permanent houses in 
the Hambantota district is as follows.

|-------------+--------------+--------------+-----------+--------------|
|DS Division  | No of houses | Houses under |   Houses  |Houses handed |
|             |   pledged    | construction | completed |   over to    |
|             |              |              |           |beneficiaries |
|-------------+--------------+--------------+-----------+--------------|
|Hambantota   |     2472     |     2263     |     393   |     187      |
|-------------+--------------+--------------+-----------+--------------|
|Tissamaharama|     365      |     366      |     108   |      65      |
|-------------+--------------+--------------+-----------+--------------|
|Ambalantota  |     608      |     629      |     327   |     300      |
|-------------+--------------+--------------+-----------+--------------|
|Tangalle     |     1087     |     1118     |     351   |     216      |
|-------------+--------------+--------------+-----------+--------------|


Education

Oxfam has begun reconstructing tsunami-damaged and the foundation stone 
for the first such school to be rebuilt was laid last Friday at the 
school, Shariputra Mahavidyalaya at Ahangama in Galle.

Livelihoods

For micro business assistance, AMURT International distributed 70 coir 
machines and the first installment of raw material (coir) to 70 
tsunami-affected women beneficiaries on 12 November. AMURT has already 
provided training for these women on how to start a micro business and 
how to make different items using coir.

FAO and the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic resources (MFAR) 
distributed 85 engines, 2,952 nets and 10,000 long lines to 
approximately 344 fishers in Trincomalee on 10 November. The 
distribution of fishing equipment was made as part of two separate 
projects funded by the Governments of Japan and Belgium. The 100 bundles 
of long lines including pre-assembled lines composed of hooks, floats 
swivels and lines is valued at US$ 44 270. Long lines catch much fewer 
fish than nets and are slightly more labour intensive, but this method 
of fishing greatly increases the value of the catch. A total of 309 
kits, including 2,952 hurulla, or trenched sardine, nets were 
distributed to 159 beneficiaries as part of a project funded by the 
Japanese Government. This brings the total number of nets distributed by 
the project to approximately 9,000. Engines were distributed to boat 
owners who have their boats registered with the Department of Fisheries. 
The Belgian funded project provided 72 of the 85 engines distributed, 
while the Japanese funded project accounted for the other 13. The new 
engines will ensure that 85 more boats return to sea and an estimated 
170 fishers will resume their livelihoods.  FAO has already distributed 
350 outboard engines through the Belgian and Japanese funded projects. 
FAO and MFAR will continue to distribute necessary fishing inputs to 
tsunami affected fishers in Trincomalee over the coming two months. FAO 
has faced major constraints in acquiring some fishing related supplies 
like nets and engines for distribution in Sri Lanka. This is due in 
large part to the high demand for fishing gear throughout the disaster 
affected region in the post-tsunami context. After encountering great 
difficulties, FAO has located reliable suppliers, allowing it to 
continue its essential gear replacement programme as planned.

More than 70 youth from transitional shelters established by IOM in the 
Kalutara district will embark on new livelihood ventures following an 
IOM-sponsored vocational training course. Youth who have completed the 
training course received certificates along with comprehensive 
livelihood kits for setting up various trades or self-employment 
projects The youth selected for the course from among hundreds of 
tsunami-affected families living in IOM shelters are the second batch to 
obtain such training at the Kalutara Technical College. The first group 
of about 50 youth graduated in September and is now in the midst of a 
six-month on-the-job training in their respective fields. Plans are 
underway to extend this pilot project in vocational training to the 
eastern Batticaloa and Trincomalee districts in collaboration with the 
Vocational Training Authority.

In tsunami-affected Dickwella, Dandeniya, Weligama, Mirrissa, Kekanadura 
and Thallalla in Matara 280.53 acres of paddy has been damaged by the 
tsunami and a total of 286 beneficiaries received 11,726 kg of paddy 
seed and 28, 600 kg of fertilizer for the Yala planting season and 
11,080 kg of paddy seed and 45,505 kg of fertilizer for the Maha 
planting seed by FAO.

The Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources has to date issued 333 
vouchers to fishermen in Matara to receive fishing gear kits for amounts 
of Rs.10,000?Rs.40,000, while 88 persons received fishing gear through 
CEYNOR, the remaining 245 are yet to receive fishing gear and the others 
are yet to receive vouchers for fishing gear.

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