The handing over ceremony of Houses built by Caritas Batticaloa-EHED (One of Caritas Sri Lanka’s Diocesan Centers.) in collaboration with the Government took place recently in Kulaveli in the Karaitivu D.S Division of the Ampara District.

75 houses were completed in four months and handed over to families who were affected by the 2004 Tsunami, which took the lives of more than 40 thousand people in Sri Lanka.

This was the end of over 3 years of ordeal for these families who have been living in camps since the Tsunami displaced them and made them homeless.

The list of families selected was chosen by the D.S of Karaitivu which also nominated child headed families who are below the age of 18, live with guardians but are the owners of the house; and there were also a few single households composed of a widower who had lost his wife and children in the Tsunami.

75 families now have a roof over their heads for the cost of 950,000/= per house.
The houses are all single story houses with a sitting area, two bedrooms, a kitchen, a toilet and a bathroom.

Thanks to having a new home, the families now also have a chance to start living a dignified life again.
Prior to the Tsunami, a large number of the housing beneficiaries worked as Fishermen though hardly any of them owned their boats. Others worked as masons or laborers and since the houses are just 1km from the sea, most of them are able to continue with their old professions and therefore generate a regular income.

The Government which provided the five acres of land to build these houses on; also has the responsibility to supply power, drinking water and other infrastructure.

The implementation of this project was filled with challenges. The adverse weather conditions caused by the North East Monsoons, fluctuations in the prices of raw materials and the Harthals caused by the unstable political situation in the country were some of the hardships Caritas Batticaloa–EHED encountered during the building of these homes.

Caritas Swiss funded this project and in addition to providing financial support they also gave Caritas Batticaloa-EHED a lot of encouragement by conducting many field visits and by cooperating in every possible way to ensure the successful completion of this project.

Fr Damian Fernando                                                 Sumaya Samarasinghe          
National Director                                                        Snr Communications Office