Norway
to assist ILO in tsunami rehabilitation work
The
Norwegian government has provided the International Labour
Organization (ILO) with Rs. 180 million to speed up the tsunami
rehabilitation work in Sri Lanka. Norway, in co-operation
with ILO, aims to contribute to social and economic reconstruction
and poverty reduction in tsunami affected communities.
With the Norwegian financial
assistance, the ILO through its “income recovery technical
assistance programme” (IRTAP), will strengthen the Restoring
Livelihoods Programme set up by the Task Force for Rebuilding
the Nation (TAFREN). The Restoring Livelihoods Programme’s
goal is to strengthen coordination and monitoring of livelihood
recovery in such areas as temporary income transfer schemes,
cash for work and support to revive and improve economic activities.
Other partners providing support are the World Bank and UNDP.
This project would provide
technical assistance to TAFREN for coordination of the livelihood
component of Government of Sri Lanka 's back to work program,
and it would increase the institutional capacity of TAFREN
to implement the income recovery program at national, district
and divisional level.
“We see the necessity
to speed up the tsunami reconstruction work and are happy
to contribute to TAFREN’s efforts for social- and economic
reconstruction and poverty reduction", says Ambassador
Hans Brattskar.
Major activities of the project
include the employment and training of temporary staff, including
59 livelihood officers of the Ministry of Labour Relations
and Foreign Employment at the divisional level, procurement
of computer equipment, vehicles, and motorbikes, introduction
of procedures and guidelines using both national and international
best practice, research and studies to analyze the livelihood
recovery process and monitor its effectiveness, capacity building
of income recovery service providers, production of information
on the needs as well as the supply of livelihood recovery
programmes, and support to local economic planning through
a participatory approach. The project will be implemented
during a 12 month period in 2005 and 2006.
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