Community Water Stories Sri Lanka

Background

Sri Lanka is one of among 15 developing nations with severe food and water shortages, according to the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) of the UN. Farmers in Sri Lanka are impacted the most by these shortages. One University of Sri Lanka study cites that 40% of the population is poverty stricken while 15% of the population is unemployed. Civil strife has gone on for 2 decades. The country has had rapid improvement, modernization, and expansion, but cannot meet their basic needs because of a deformed system.

Problems in region

Sri Lanka has suffered greatly due to food and water shortages. Seven million people in a country of 17 million people are earning less than $12 per month. A UNICEF study cites that half of Sri Lankan children are malnourished and 33% of all children die before the age of 5 because of polluted water.

Sri Lanka has tried to rapidly modernize, but the strategy of development has not been well planned. Rice and rice production has long been a staple of Sri Lankan people, but vast modernization and rapid inflation has made paddy production less attractive and more expensive for farmers. Mass production techniques have made the land less fertile, and use up vast quantities of resources that could be allocated elsewhere. The FAO and the World Food Summit have stressed the need for reviving traditional knowledge and techniques in trying to solve food and water problems.

Of 100,000 village reservoirs identified by the FAO, only 3,000 function properly. Reservoirs are used to meet village water needs, especially during dry seasons. Without these reservoirs, water becomes a very scarce resource.

Efforts being made to solve the problem

The FAO has worked for some time to provide relief to the Sri Lankan government, but prioritizing development has been a major issue. The FAO has been working with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to try to solve the problem. Swarna Hansa Foundation has been playing a major role in the revitalization of water resources. They have developed a 3 pronged approach to help avert famine and hunger. This approach involves the reconstructing water systems - focusing on reservoirs, agricultural wells, and drinking water wells. Village reservoirs help recharge and augment shallow groundwater during the rainy season. This water can be used to help sustain water needs during dry season.

Swarna Hansa Foundation has focused their efforts on reconstructing 65 village reservoirs, constructing over 1,000 water wells, and desilting some of the village reservoirs. Repairing small water tanks has become a major target as well. By revitalizing the water system, famine issues will be eased. Farmers can use water from reservoirs to rejuvenate paddy production, agricultural wells for vegetable production, and water wells for drinking water.

International Involvement

The FAO has been involved with trying to solve food and water shortages in Sri Lanka. They allocated 2.35 billion Sri Lankan Rupees for reservoir repair, with the Swarna Hansa Foundation and local NGOs taking charge. The World Food Summit has also been instrumental in promoting the use of traditional knowledge and farming practices in Sri Lanka.