Caritas Sri Lanka has been supporting survivors of the Tsunami since the day of the disaster. Within hours of the deadly waves hitting the coast Caritas Sri Lanka was bringing relief to those whose lives and homes were destroyed. In the weeks that followed 24,000 families were assisted, receiving essential items such as cooking pans, clothing and mosquito nets.

Caritas Sri Lanka, with support from Caritas Internationalis member organisations, then began building high quality transitional shelters for the most vulnerable, in keeping with best international disaster response standards. We constructed over 6,500 shelters, an achievement which was recognised by the then President, Mrs. Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaranatunga.

Other achievements in the emergency and transitional phases of Caritas' Tsunami work include: -

Child support: 17,000 children were able to return to school after the distribution of thousands of school uniforms, pairs of shoes and stationary packs

Livelihood recovery: over 65,000 working days were supported by Caritas Sri Lanka under its cash for work programme.

Emotional support: provided trauma counselling to almost 2000 adults and children, and trained over 200 counsellors.

Caritas Sri Lanka's work has now moved into the rehabilition phase. Our goal is to empower people to live secure and dignified lives, and to rebuild stronger communities than those which existed before the Tsunami. We are commited to the long-term rehabilitation of vulnerable families and communities affected by the disaster. Caritas Sri Lanka is working to rebuild peoples homes, taking into account that home is more than just a house. We recognise that supporting viable livelihoods is as important as reconstructing houses.

About Caritas Sri LankaTsunami Programme
• Area of Coverage: Four regions - Jaffna ( Jaffna , Killinochchi, Mullaitivu), Batticaloa (Trincomalee, Batticaloa, Ampara), Galle (Hambantota, Matara and Galle ) and Colombo .
• Special Operation Appeal: 03/2005 – Current proposed Budget: US$ 100 million
• Duration: 26 December 2004 – 31 December 2008 (4 years)