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Disaster Risk Management
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Sri Lanka is governed by an elected executive and a government drawn from a parliament of
225 members. It has 9 provinces and there is partial
devolution to these levels. In addition, each of the 9 provinces have 2-3
districts in them. Administration
in each of these districts is under the central authority of
the District Secretary (formerly Government Agent). Each district comprises of perhaps 10-20 subdivisions
called Divisional Secretariat divisions (formerly AGA
divisions) under the charge of a Divisional Secretary. (The population density map shows the
DS division boundaries.) Each subdivision has several dozen village units (Grama Niladhari Divisions - GND) comprising a few thousand people.
After a decade-long war and 2 year old cease fire, there is
an ad-hoc
arrangement of control of the Jaffna, Mullaitivu, Killinochchi and Mannar districts by the dominant military group the LTTE and partial control over adjacent areas. There is a formal ceasefire and a monitoring mission from Scandinavian countries. While, the government officials there (GA, Divisional Secretary, GND officers) do
liaise with the central government, leadership of relief efforts is likely by the LTTE,
and its associated organisation TRO.
Disaster Management has been done by the Department of Social Services under the Ministry of Women's Empowerment and Social Welfare,
and its focus historically has been on rehabilitation, relief and monitoring. Under this umbrella an emergency operation center is activated to manage and co-ordinate the relief operations at disaster
situations - National Disaster Management
Centre.
Due to the unprecedented scale of the Tsunami relief operation required in Sri Lanka, and the requirement to co-ordinate with numerous international governments and organizations, a special operational unit has also been set up under the direct purview of the President. This is the
Centre for National Operations.
Ministry of Relief,
Rehabilitation and Reconciliation, under the purview of
the President is the main government organisation chanelling
relief and reconstruction measures in the North and East.
Two further units has also been set up under the Prime Minister and the Governor of the Western Province
respectively, in order to assist with the relief operations.
A significant role is also played by the
Ministry of Health,
under which all the government medical facilities fall in.
They have played a key role in providing medical help to
affected areas and camps.
There has been active involvement of both local and international Non-Governmental Organizations in relief during the civil wars and some of them such as
Sarvodaya have an exemplary record of service. Some aid agencies have a permanent presence in the war-affected areas in the North and East - such as GTZ , ICRC etc. In these areas these agencies converted their existing operations to emergency relief operations. However, the first responders (and in many areas the only responders in rural areas) are informally organized neighbours, offices, political parties but above all people organized at places of worship.
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Three bodies made up of both state and private sector professionals have been
set up to oversee restoration of tsunami affected areas. The three
groups are tasked relief, rebuilding, and logistics and to ensure law
& order.
Task Force for Rescue and Relief (TAFRER)
Dr Tara de Mel- Chairperson
Sunethra Bandaranaike
Nayanthra Fonseka
Prof. Sherifideen
Dr. Depa Wimalasena
TAFRER will collect,analyse and tsunami disaster and assess the needs of all sectors. It will coordinate and facilitates the implementation of all rescue, relief and rehabilitation activities through the relevant line Ministries, District Secretaries and Divisional secretaries and other relevant Government Authorities.
This Task Force will coordinate all international donor assistance, voluntary services and NGO assistance and rehabilitation activities and in consultation with the Ministry of Finance and Planning, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, relevant line Ministries and the Center for National Operations(CNO).
Task Force to Rebuild the Nation (TAFREN)
Mano Tittawella-Chairman
Lalith Weeratunge (Secretary to the Prime Minister)
Harry Jayawardene
Nihal Fonseka
Rajan Britto
Mano Selvanathan
Mahesh Amalean
Ken Balendra
Rohini Nanayakara
Nihal Jinasena
Plan to rebuild infrastructure and its rescue development. Work toward this end will begin on the 15th of January and is expected to be completed within one year. The priority areas will are housing, hospitals,
schools, fisheries, power roads, and bridge, Railway, Water supply &
drainage, telecom, tourism, urban development the environment. It will coordinate and implement the approved plans through state and private organizations and Local Government bodies. The ‘Authority for Rebuilding the Nation’ will be established under an urgent Parliamentary Act.
TAFREN
(Task Force to Rebuild the Nation)
6 Floor,
No 21, Janadhipathi Mawatha,
Colombo 1, Sri Lanka.
Tel : +94 11 2426161-5
Fax : +94 11 2395095
Task Force for Logistics and Law & Order (TAFLOL)
Tilak Rnaviraja- Chairman
Cyril Herath
Kingsley Wickramasuriya
Gen Jerry De Silva
TAFLOL will coordinate all logistical activities of relief work,and facilitate easy access to relief supplies to those in need of it.
TAFLOL will coordinate with the customs and Immigration Authorities and ensure the secure storage and distribution of the basic needs of the disaster victims.
This unit will work in consultation with TAFRER and the Center for National Operations - (CNO) housed at the presidents office.
This unit is tasked with the protection of the disaster victims from harassment and exploitation.
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