(COLOMBO, LANKAPUVATH) –H.E. Thorbjørn Gaustadsæther, Ambassador of the Royal Norwegian Embassy to Sri Lanka recently visited the Tellipalai Divisional Secretariat area in the Jaffna District where communities have been recently resettled.
During this visit, the Ambassador declared open and handed over completed economic infrastructures, namely the Multi-Purpose Building, which would ease the accessibility of the community to all government related services, and the Myliddy harbor which will support the fishing community in the resettled areas.
Implemented on the ground by UNDP, the support extended to the newly resettled areas in Tellipalai and Kopay in the Jaffna District and in Sampoor, Trincomalee District is a result of funding from the Government of Norway – supporting over 1,400 households with a contribution of more than Rs. 300 million.
Addressing the community in the Palali East Tellipalai DS Division in Jaffna, H.E Thorbjørn Gaustadsæther, Ambassador of the Royal Norwegian Embassy to Sri Lanka stated “It is very important for people to return to their original places and reestablished their lives. Therefore, from the time of the land release and start of the resettlement process, the Norwegian Government decided to financially support people to re-start the livelihood activities and promote the resettlement process….We have seen that our support has been an encouragement for displaced families to return to their origin and restore their lost livelihoods.”
The Ambassador also paid a visit to a young entrepreneur who now produces Electronic Panels and all construction industry related electrical works through training under the Youth Entrepreneurship Development Programme supported by the Government of Norway. Under this programme a total of 196 young entrepreneurs have been trained and guided to start small-scale businesses to support their livelihood.
UNDP Sri Lanka works with resettled communities with funding assistance from the Royal Norwegian Embassy to uplift their livelihoods and revive the local economy in the area. The project also seeks to enhance access to government services whilst strengthening community organizations and networks.
