UNICEF Sri Lanka sets up new schools

by Rohana JAYALAL

UNICEF Sri Lanka handed over several new schools set up by them to local communities affected by 2004 tsunami and civil conflict in the Eastern Provincial Council (EPC) in Sri Lanka. EPC sources said.

According to the EPC report, the new schools are located in, Sinnamugatuvaram, Kalmunai, Maruthamuni, Santhamaruthu, Thirukovil and Kalmunaikudy and US dollars 3.8 million (Rs. 420 million) has been invested by UNICEF Sri Lanka on these schools, which will benefit thousands of pupils and the future generation in the Eastern province. All schools have been built as child-friendly schools, with a high quality of construction comprising clean drinking Water, separate toilets for boys, girls and teachers, hand-washing facilities, furniture and learning materials and access for children with special needs.

According to EPC sources, these schools are part of UNICEF support for Sri Lanka in the continuing efforts to ensure the right of children to education.

UNICEF Sri Lanka hopes to set up several other schools with child-friendly facilities for those affected by the civil conflict in the Eastern and Northern provinces.

World School Chess Championships:

Movindhu to represent Sri Lanka

by Anuradha ABEYSEKERA

A.I.H. Movindhu of Rahula College, Matara has been selected to represent Sri Lanka at the World Schools Chess Championships - 2010. Eight-year-old Movindhu who is studying in the fourth grade of Rahula College, Primary Section will compete in the under nine age category.

This year's tournament will be held in Kayseri, Turkey from July 20 to 31 and has been organised by the Turkish Chess Federation on behalf of the FIDE (World Chess Federation).

Players from more than 100 countries will take part in this tournament and this will be in the very first occasion that a Sri Lankan team will be taking part. Movindhu is a budding chess champion who came into the limelight after winning the silver medal at the All-Island under-nine championships this year. He has shown a good progress in his short career by reaching National level within two years.

Movindhu seeks sponsorships to participate in this championship as players have to bear the cost of the tour. Benefactors can contact the School Principal and help Movindhu to make his participation a reality.

Today is World Population Day:

Everybody counts

Today is a very significant day to the because it concerns the entire population of the world. The state of life of people around the world lead is impacted by the number of people living on the Earth as the amount of natural resources in the world does not increase in the same manner the number of people do. So, every year the World Population Day which is observed on July 11 focuses on issues related to population. The United Nations' (UN) World Population Day reaffirms the human right to plan for a family.

It encourages activities, events and information to help make this right a reality throughout the world. On this day, the UN marks the anniversary of the day, in 1987, when the world's population exceeded five billion.

This is a day to think about population-related issues in an ever more crowded world. World Population Day aims to increase people's awareness on various population issues such as the importance of family planning, including gender equality, poverty, maternal health and human rights.

Today, there are more than six billion people on the planet, with half of the world's population under the age of 25" at or just reaching their childbearing years.

The population bomb?

In the last 50 years, global population has more than doubled, reaching a total of around 6.2 billion people on this Earth.

It is expected to increase by another 2.6 billion in the next 47 years. Projections show that the world population could stabilise. While it is now accepted that the world population will not continue to increase exponentially until we're falling off the planet, the question remains how will the Earth sustain five billion more people in the next 150 years?.

This year's theme -Everyone Counts, will underscore the importance of data for development. It will foster an understanding of why reliable, disaggregated data is so crucial to progress and encourage people to participate in the census and other data collection efforts.