Houses for tsunami victims in East

The Saudi Charity Campaign for the Relief of the Earthquake and Tsunami Victims in Asia (SCC) and IOM have started construction work on a model housing development for the tsunami-affected families in eastern Sri Lanka.

Construction work is already under way on over 250 permanent houses and infrastructure including a road network, two separate schools for boys and girls and a multi-purpose hall in Ampara, on one of the areas worst hit by the December 2004 tsunami.

The project follows an agreement signed between the SCC and IOM last year for IOM to build permanent houses, infrastructure and other facilities in the Ampara district. Under the US$10 million agreement, IOM will build 500 houses, a clinic, two schools, a market, a multi-purpose hall, a mosque and a mini-stadium.

It will also build roads and landscaping. The project will also provide two buses to serve the community.

"These people have lived in transitional, temporary shelters for the past three years since the tsunami. We believe that this project will help them to rebuild their lives by rebuilding their community," said IOM Sri Lanka Chief of Mission Mohammed Abdi Ker.