Sri Lanka: Tsunami Summary

Updated: 8 December 2005

Latest News

Two separate US$2 million grants from ADB's Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR), financed by the Government of Japan, have been approved for tsunami victims in Sri Lanka. The first one will provide temporary income opportunities to tsunami-affected people through a cash for work program, and the second one will help tsunami-affected households access electricity and water supplies.


TSUNAMI IMPACT

Casualties

Dead: over 35,000; Displaced: 443,000

Overall Damage

The tsunami of 26 December 2004 struck a relatively thin but long coastal area stretching over 1,000 kilometers, or two thirds of the country's coastline. The damage stretched from Jaffna in the north down the entire eastern and southern coast, and covered the west coast as far north of Colombo as Chilaw.

Sri Lanka will need about US$1.5 billion to effectively implement a recovery and reconstruction strategy according to a damage and needs assessment released by ADB, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and the World Bank on 2 February. According to the latest assessments, Sri Lanka will need about $2.2 billion to effectively implement a recovery and reconstruction strategy. That includes capacity building and substantial spending on the tourism industry. Development Partners ranging from private individuals both inside and outside Sri Lanka, to governments, NGOs and development agencies, have pledged $2.8 billion. As of November 2005, $2.1 billion have been committed.

The assessment, prepared in close cooperation with the Government of Sri Lanka and all stakeholders in the reconstruction process agreed on a set of clear guiding principles for the reconstruction strategy, with an important emphasis on the inclusion of affected communities in the planning and process of rebuilding.

It estimates the overall damage to Sri Lanka at $1 billion with a large proportion of losses concentrated in housing, tourism, fisheries and transportation.

About 88,500 houses were damaged; of which more than 50,000 were completely destroyed. The tsunami also damaged 24,000 boats (about 70% of the fishing fleet), and 11,000 businesses. Coastal infrastructure (roads, railway, power, telecommunication, water supply, fishing ports) was also significantly affected. Fortunately, the port of Colombo, and the industrial belt in the western province sustained only light damage.

Economic Impacts

Despite the scale of the tragedy, none of the key economic infrastructure was damaged by the tsunami and rebuilding the destroyed harbors and infrastructure will all present a boom to the construction sector, according to ADB's Asian Development Outlook, released on 6 April. The tsunami impact on the national economy is therefore is less than 0.5% of GDP, trimming growth to 5.2% this year. (See related article) The economy is likely to bounce back to 5.8% in 2006 and 5.9% in 2007.


ADB ASSISTANCE

ADB assistance to Sri Lanka on the tsunami can be summarized as thus:

ADB focal sectors for tsunami assistance in Sri Lanka are roads, railways and livelihoods.

• Reallocation of $7 million from a loan for Rural Finance Sector Development approved on 23 February 2005
• Tsunami-affected Areas Rebuilding Project (TAARP) and the North East Community Restoration and Development Project II (NECORD II) for a total of $210.2 million (of which $7.0 million is reallocated funds and $150 million an Asian Tsunami Fund grant) approved on 14 April 2005
• Grant approvals include Sri Lanka Post-Tsunami Needs Assessment and Preparation for Emergency Assistance Implementation Strategies ($500,000) and Sustaining Livelihoods Development and Natural Resources Management ($250,000).
• A $2 million grant from the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR) for Public Works Restoration and Creation of Line Drainage Systems (approved 4 October 2005)
• A $2 million grant from the JFPR for the Post-Tsunami Utility Connections for the Poor (approved 14 October 2005)
• Total approved: $219.95 million

ADB Projects

TAARP will help to rapidly improve the living conditions of people in tsunami-affected areas by restoring basic social infrastructure, community and public services, and livelihoods.

It will help rebuild about 300 kilometers of national roads and 400 km of access roads, repair damaged water supply and sanitation facilities, restore livelihoods, provide microcredit, and improve coastline protection. It will also provide legal assistance to help victims address legal and documentation issues, such as the replacement of birth, death, and marriage certificates, property titles, and identification cards, as well as support good governance and anticorruption efforts in the delivery of tsunami aid.

In addition, the project will redesign and rebuild basic and social infrastructure under NECORD that was destroyed by the tsunami.

NECORD II will address basic needs in the conflict-affected North East through health, education, irrigation, agriculture, community development, institutional infrastructure, and income-generating projects.

Reallocation of funds from Rural Finance Sector Development loan will provide emergency microcredit to tsunami-affected people in the country. Over $1.3 million of microloans have already been disbursed.

The first $2 million JFPR grant will provide temporary income opportunities to about 4,500 tsunami-affected people by employing them to improve drainage systems for 500 kilometers of local government roads damaged by the tsunami. The second one will award more than 4,400 grants to poor households that cannot afford utility connections for their houses after rebuilding and repair work has finished.

About ADB