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Ongoing Projects: Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: First Project
A month after the Tsunami which hit Sri Lanka in December 2004, Manacare carried out extensive survey work and as a result of findings
have endeavoured to pitch its work where no other NGO's are as yet making provision, that is Community development. Many voluntary
organizations are building housing, but it was felt that the necessary infrastructure leading to a secure future for the victims
of Tsunami needed to be put into place, maybe alongside housing projects.
 
Joy laid the first brick at exactly 12 noon on the 12th May 2005
Manacare purchased 2.3 acres of land, in Tellwatta which is 10 miles east of the town of Ambulangoda, and 10 miles west before
the tourist town of Hikaduwa, famous for its diving holidays. Architectural plans were drawn up and those plans are now being
followed by a team of workers consisting of two British workmen and local men and women who have suffered losses either
family or livelihoods. Skilled local builders are also employed.
The completed project will provide the following :-
- School
Three classrooms each holding 34 children, together with the necessary sanitary provision.
Six Sri Lankan teachers will be employed
These classrooms will be used by children from 5 through to 11 and teaching will be based on Montessori methods as imposed by the Sri Lankan Government. School hours will be from 9.00 a.m. through to 2.00 p.m. Manacare will be seeking donations of all necessary equipment and items for everyday use.
From 2.00 p.m. through to 5.00 p.m. the classrooms will be used by older children who have no access to study facilities. Classes will be offered in computer studies, music and dance, varied religious studies, fashion design, childcare theory, beauty therapy, alternative therapies, English Language, German Language, and Spanish Language. Also groups of Boy Scouts, Brownies and Girl Guides will be initiated..
Discussions with many young people, some not attending school at all, show these to be the top ten study courses
From 6.00 p.m. through to 10.00 p.m. the classrooms will be used for Adult Education Classes, surveys for this provision are still underway.
- Medical Clinic
The Medical Centre will provide medical treatment free of charge for those in
need of such services. Manacare will be seeking donations of apparatus and
medical supplies. The Clinic will encompass Trauma Counselling, with a small
area allocated for this purpose. Alternative medicine will be used i.e. Aroma-
Therapy, Water Therapy, tactile plants will be planted, also Light and Sound
therapy will be used. Local Ayurvedic expertise will also be incorporated in this
area. A Sri Lankan doctor will be employed, also two Sri Lankan nurses.
- Therapy
Manacare intends to build on its success in other projects around the world by
introducing Conductive Education for the Physically Handicapped children,
therapy will also be used for elderly stroke victims. Individualised Training
Programmes will be designed and implemented which might include many
different therapies considered suitable during assessment of each client.
The Therapy Centre will also be used by all local sports teams for physiotherapy at a
small cost which would then be ploughed back into the project as a whole. Some of
the equipment needed, especially standing frames for the children, will be crafted
locally, in essence in our own workshop by our own Craftsmen.
- Creche
The Creche will be used essentially by the children of women and men using the
vocational training centre. It is important to note that the exit point of the crèche
will lead onto the same playground as is used by the children with physical
disabilities in the Therapy Centre, thus encouraging integration. It is envisaged
that the Creche will also form part of an after-school care facility. Women making
use of the training centre will care for these children on a rota basis.
- Playground and Garden Area
The surface of the playground will be imported and will have a sponge effect for
safety purposes. Many games will be incorporated in the design of the grounds.
It is considered that Sports and recreation will play an important part in everyday
activities.
- Vocational Training
The rear area of the building will provide facilities for Soap Making, Candle
Making, and Fishing Net Repair. Sophisticated sewing projects will be undertaken.
Singer are providing a two day training programme when we purchase their machines
The Carpenter's Shop used during the building of the project will be used to create
a self-sustainability programme, and also for training purposes. Local wooden crafts
will be made to sell. Computer training will also be given
Part of the rear acreage will be used to plant cinnamon which is grown widely in the
area, a local buyer has already been identified. It is expected that the income
from this source will be sufficient to pay the electricity costs for a period of one year.
The remainder of the land at the back of the project will be used to create a play park
for the children and it is hoped in the future a swimming pool.
Second Phase
Housing schemes are plentiful now in Sri Lanka, in the North, South and East,
although much of the provision is temporary housing structures.
Our findings show that there is still a lack in provision of housing for the following
- One parent family housing
- Sheltered Housing for the Elderly, one housekeeper caring for
four elderly people. Whilst the Sri Lankan culture is to care for
their own elderly, a consequence of Tsunami is that many of the
elderly have been left without families of their own.
- Teenage Foster Homes – Mother and Father figures, caring for
four teenage children, carefully selected, thus encompassing a loving and
caring family atmosphere. This could include special programmes for
young offenders which our figures show is desperately needed.
Current Status
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