UN AGENCIES IN SRI LANKA SEEK $66 MILLION FOR HUMANITARIAN AID IN 2007

GENEVA/ NEW YORK, 17 January (OCHA) -- The United Nations humanitarian agencies and their partners working in Sri Lanka today presented a Common Humanitarian Action Plan (CHAP) to the donor community, which sets forth priority activities over the next 6 to 12 months.  To support these activities, $66 million in funding is requested.

The recurrence of violence and hostilities in the north and east of the country since April 2006 has impacted negatively upon the humanitarian situation of the civilian population -- a situation already strained by prior conflict and the widespread destruction wrought by the 26 December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.  Nearly 213,000 people have been newly displaced in the past nine months, bringing the total number of displaced persons in the country to over half a million.  Of that total, some 315,000 remain displaced from earlier stages in the conflict, in addition to those who are still without permanent shelter due to the tsunami.

Access by both land and by sea to the Jaffna peninsula in the north of the country has been limited in recent months due to the security situation.  Additionally, thousands of Sri Lankans remain vulnerable in uncleared areas of Batticaloa and Trincomalee districts.  The international community, including members of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee country team in Sri Lanka, donors and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) have been in regular contact with the Government of Sri Lanka regarding the shipment of relief supplies and facilitation of humanitarian access.  The Government of Sri Lanka has recently committed to improve the supply by sea and local distribution networks.

The present CHAP builds upon the projects presented in August 2006 and reflects developments in the security and humanitarian fields since then.  It is intended to address established and evolving emergency needs, and to complement the ongoing efforts being made by the Government of Sri Lanka. 

Included in CHAP are 72 projects in agriculture, education, food, health, shelter, water and sanitation, coordination and support, economic recovery and infrastructure, protection and human rights, and security.  Participating United Nations agencies include the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), International Labour Organization (ILO), Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), World Food Programme (WFP) and the World Health Organization (WHO), as well as the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and a number of international and national non-governmental organizations.

For further information, please call:  Stephanie Bunker, OCHA- New York, tel.:  +1 917 367 5126, mobile:  +1 917 892 1679; Kristen Knutson, OCHA- New York, tel.:  +1 917 367 9262; Elisabeth Byrs, OCHA-Geneva, tel.:  +41 22 917 2653, mobile:  +41 79 473 4570.  OCHA press releases are available at http://ochaonline.un.org or www.reliefweb.int.

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