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| Sunday, 24 July 2005 |
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Jaffna gets nets, outboard motors Over 1,000 nets and 100 outboard motors were distributed to 330 fishermen in the Jaffna district, last week, among those affected by the tsunami of December. Fishing kits worth approximately $ 26, 730 complete with ropes, floats and twine were distributed to beneficiaries in five locations of the district. These nets procured with Japanese funds will be used in fishing Sardines and Mackerel off the northern coast of Sri Lanka, with Sardine fishers receiving five and mackerel fishers, four nets, each. FAO has received $5 million from Tokyo to be used for emergency assistance for relief rehabilitation and reconstruction work in tsunami-stricken countries of which $2.171 million is for Sri Lanka, FAO Emergency and Rehabilitation Coordinator, here, Mona Chaya said. The Ministry of Fisheries required that the minimum amount of nets be given to fisher beneficeries to restart their livelihoods, Director General of the Department of Fisheries, G Piyasena said. There are 19 organisations in the Jaffna district working on fisheries livehohoods. They are involved in boat repair, providing boats and fishing equipment, rehabilitating fisheries infrastructure and working directly with fishers to ensure that their livelihoods are restored, according to the FAO web. "Additional distribution by other participants in Jaffna will ensure that fishers are provided with a full complement for optimal fishing," Mona Chaya said. FAO has already ordered more than $1.3 million nets and equipment on the international markets to be delivered between now and August and is in the process of ordering $4 million more, Chaya said. "The current overwhelming demand for nets in the region has made it difficult to procure a sufficient amount to replace those lost and destroyed as a result of the tsunami. We've had some suppliers balk on their orders and have had to procure the majority of the fishing gear from overseas," FAO Master Fisherman and Fishing Gear Specialist C Binduhewa said. FAO also issued the equivalent of $114,000 worth of outboard motors in Jaffna with funds received from Japan's Official Development Assistance. The 8-horsepower engines meet the requirements of the lagoon and coastal fisheries of the northern province. "The outdoor motors will allow me to go out farther in search of fish. I'll spend less time sailing and more time fishing or taking care of my family," Bala Krishnasami of Velveddithurai, who lost most of his possessions in the tsunami said. Many of the fishers have already had their boats repaired by NGOs and the government-owned boat repair company Cey-Nor Foundation. FAB supports Cey-Nor technically and financially using funds received from a number of international donors, the governments of Japan, Italy, Norway, Belgium and the Italian Civic Protection, ECHO and GTYZ have contributed funds to ensure that boats damaged by the tsunami are expertly repaired and returned to service as soon as possible, Chaya said. EL |
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