For many years, local organisation Humedica Lanka has been helping communities in Sri Lanka to build resilience and self-reliance, reducing their vulnerability to disaster.
As well as providing immediate, life-saving support when necessary, Humedica Lanka helps communities to identify the underlying causes of their vulnerability. The communities are then able to use their existing skills and resources to build economic, social and psychological resilience.
‘The Covid-19 pandemic made us immobile and stopped all of our earning opportunities, as we depended mainly on fishing,’ says Kavitha, a lady from Thalaimannar in Sri Lanka.
She continues, ‘The economic crisis following Covid-19 did not allow us to go back to fishing due to shortages of kerosene oil and its high cost. We struggled even to feed our children and elders at home. We downsized our meals and filled our stomachs with cheaper food.
‘But at this time Humedica Lanka encouraged us to start one of our forgotten traditional livelihood activities: Palmyra production.’
The Palmyra palm is a strong, productive tree that thrives in Sri Lanka. Its sweet sap and fruit are used to make juice, sweets and cakes. Palmyra sprouts (underground tubers) are dried or boiled to form Odiyal, a hard chewable snack. The leaves can be used for thatching or to make mats, baskets, fans, hats and other handicrafts.
Kavitha says, ‘Humedica Lanka helped us with basic inputs and provided training so we could upgrade our knowledge and skills. They also connected us to marketing networks. We earned enough to feed our family during the crisis, and it has become a successful business. Many of us have become successful entrepreneurs.’
Future hope
In the fishing community of Moratuwa, many children were dropping out of school due to family breakdown and rising levels of extreme poverty. Some of this was caused by a high level of drug and alcohol misuse in the community.
Taking a holistic approach, Humedica Lanka began to offer mentoring and educational support for the children. As the children learnt to read, write and develop important life skills, they started to dream about their future – something they had not done for a long time.
At the same time their parents were helped to understand their obligations better, and many received counselling and were able to recover from anxiety and addiction.
Now, most children are back in school and the community is much stronger, both economically and socially. This means they are in a better position to cope with future hazards such as cyclones, floods, droughts and landslides.
Long-term approach
Disaster and vulnerability are like two sides of the same coin. People who are affected by difficulties such as poverty, addiction, discrimination and lack of public services are often the people who are the most badly affected when there is a crisis.
Over time, and with the right kind of support, communities can use their existing skills and resources to address some of these difficulties and develop coping mechanisms. As resilience grows, quality of life improves and lives are saved.