Draft
Rebuilding Fisheries Livelihoods in Sri Lanka Post-Tsunami
Concept note by ITDG-South Asia
Context: The tsunami waves that hit Sri Lanka on the 26th December 2004 have decimated coastal fishing communities. They have not only been affected by loss or substantial damage to their shelter, but also to boats and fishing gear.
Sri Lanka's fishing industry contributed nearly 2.5 percent to the country's national income. From Point Pedro in the Northern Jaffna Peninsula up to Galle district in the Southern province there were 171,000 active fishermen engaged in fishing industry. The coastal zone accounts for nearly 80% of fish production. Fisheries play a central role in supplying about 65% of the animal protein consumed by Sri Lankans. The coastal fishery provides the major portion of this.
The Chairman of the NACA Governing Council who is the Director General of Fisheries Development stated that as a consequence of the tsunamis the “fishery industry has been pushed back to its 1950 status”.
Problem: Coastal communities dependent on fishery industry to provide livelihoods have been seriously affected by the tsunami. Rough statistics given below highlight the problem:
The Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources is currently collecting data to accurately estimate the damage and it is believed that reliable data will be available on the 20th January, 2005. Estimates of the scale of destruction so far indicate that: Nearly 90 percent of fishing people have been seriously affected having lost their boats, fishing nets and homes. Nearly 80% per cent of the 30,000 fishing vessels in the country has been completely destroyed. 80% of the boats in the districts of Colombo, Negombo, Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Mullaitu, Tricomalee, Batticaloa, Ampara, Hambantota, Matar, Galle and Kaluthara have been destroyed or seriously damaged. Approximately 50% of the boats need to be replaced and 50% repaired. In Puttalam and Mannar, the overall damage is estimated as 25%. The bulk of the boats destroyed or damaged are small non-motorized boats owned and operated by the poorest of the community. There are estimated 8000 small boats in Sri Lanka and it is expected that all these boats have to be replaced. About 700 are damaged. Fishing ports have been devastated with extensive loss of essential infrastructure such as ice plants, cold rooms, workshops, slipways and marine structures. 12 of the 14 fishing harbours in the country have been completely devastated There are 37 anchorage spaces, all these have been affected and need substantial cleaning.
Draft: rebuilding fisheries livelihoods in Sri Lanka post-tsunami – ITDG South Asia, January 2005 1 There are approx. 600 landing sites which have been badly affected (numbers not known). A large number of boat yards that produce boats for the fishing community is also very badly damaged. Small scale fishing communities are among the poorest communities in the country and their livelihoods have been decimated.
Proposal: ITDG proposes to use its experience in the fisheries sector to work with the national level rebuilding programmes as well as isolated efforts by NGOs and local organisations to rebuild small scale fishing.
For this purpose we will draw on the ITDG Group network of expertise in fisheries to:
1. Provide specific expertise on rebuilding/replacement/repair of fishing boats and fishing gear to cater in particular to small scale fisheries ITDG proposes to use its experience on small scale fisheries technologies to provide expertise to assist in the boat rebuilding processes being implemented by other organisations such as the FAO, CEY-NOR Foundation and the Ministry of Fisheries and other NGOs.
CEY-NOR has highlighted the need for: Expertise on building / repair of fibre glass boats and multi day boats. Tools and equipment for boat yards that are damaged. Setting up of additional boat building / repair factories on a short term basis. Service and repair of engines that have been affected due to water.
ITDG will include providing expertise to upgrade equipment and methods used by small scale fishing communities, to address pre-disaster and post-disaster issues and problems in fisheries sector.
2. Build capacity in the small scale fisheries sector in the rebuilding process ITDG will provide expertise inputs and help organise training of new engineers and on the job training for technicians and involve them in the rebuilding process. ITDG will focus on maximising the involvement of fisheries communities themselves in the rebuilding process. For example, ITDG proposes to: