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| Sunday, 1 May 2005 |
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Foreign Ministry sponsors tsunami housing project Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar laid the foundation stone for a housing project in Walahanduwa, in Akmeemana, Galle, for tsunami affected families, on Thursday 28th April, invited by Urban Development and Water Supply Minister Dinesh Gunawardena. This project will be carried out by the Urban Development and Water Supply Ministry and will be funded by donations collected by the Foreign Affairs Ministry and Sri Lanka Missions abroad after the tsunami disaster. Over 600 million rupees were collected through Sri Lanka Missions with the generous contributions from members of the public and well-wishers abroad, both Sri Lankan and foreign, following the tsunami disaster. This money will be entirely utilized for providing permanent housing for tsunami affected families. The Walahanduwa project is only a part of this wider plan to provide housing to people affected by the disaster in the northern, eastern and southern areas of the country. Speaking at the foundation stone laying ceremony, Minister Kadirgamar said Rs. 600 million would fund the construction of over 1000 houses in separate complexes comprising approximately 200 houses each. Minister Kadirgamar said it was a very special occasion for the Foreign Ministry where it was able to do something with direct impact upon the people of the country, although it was unfortunate that it had to be under such tragic circumstances. The Minister emphasized the responsibility of ensuring that this 600 million, which was given by ordinary people abroad, be spent for the benefit of people affected by the disaster without any kind of discrimination. The Minister added that the special unit within the Foreign Ministry set up for this purpose would be coordinating the progress of the construction project with the Ministry of Urban Development and Water Supply. He further expressed the hope that the project, once started, would proceed without undue delay and said that it would be a happy moment when the families actually take possession of the completed houses. Urban Development and Water Supply Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, Public Administration and Home Affairs Minister Amarasiri Dodangoda, Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Minister Chandrasena Wijesinghe, as well as officials of Foreign Affairs and Urban Development and Water Supply Ministries and members of the tsunami affected families in the area also participated at the simple ceremony. |
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