Draft Rebuilding Fisheries Livelihoods in Sri Lanka Post-Tsunami Concept note by ITDG-South Asia Context: The tsunami waves that hit Sri Lanka on the 26 th December 2004 have decimated coastal fishing communities. They have not only been affected by loss or substantial damage to their shelter, but also to boats and fishing gear. Sri Lanka's fishing industry contributed nearly 2.5 percent to the country's national income. From Point Pedro in the Northern Jaffna Peninsula up to Galle district in the Southern province there were 171,000 active fishermen engaged in fishing industry. The coastal zone accounts for nearly 80% of fish production. Fisheries play a central role in supplying about 65% of the animal protein consumed by Sri Lankans. The coastal fishery provides the major portion of this. The Chairman of the NACA Governing Council who is the Director General of Fisheries Development stated that as a consequence of the tsunamis the fishery industry has been pushed back to its 1950 status. Problem: Coastal communities dependent on fishery industry to provide livelihoods have been seriously affected by the tsunami. Rough statistics given below highlight the problem: The Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources is currently collecting data to accurately estimate the damage and it is believed that reliable data will be available on the 20 th January, 2005. Estimates of the scale of destruction so far indicate that:! Nearly 90 percent of fishing people have been seriously affected having lost their boats, fishing nets and homes.! Nearly 80% per cent of the 30,000 fishing vessels in the country has been completely destroyed. 80% of the boats in the districts of Colombo, Negombo, Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Mullaitu, Tricomalee, Batticaloa, Ampara, Hambantota, Matar, Galle and Kaluthara have been destroyed or seriously damaged. Approximately 50% of the boats need to be replaced and 50% repaired. In Puttalam and Mannar, the overall damage is estimated as 25%.! The bulk of the boats destroyed or damaged are small non-motorized boats owned and operated by the poorest of the community. There are estimated 8000 small boats in Sri Lanka and it is expected that all these boats have to be replaced. About 700 are damaged.! Fishing ports have been devastated with extensive loss of essential infrastructure such as ice plants, cold rooms, workshops, slipways and marine structures.! 12 of the 14 fishing harbours in the country have been completely devastated! There are 37 anchorage spaces, all these have been affected and need substantial cleaning. Draft: rebuilding fisheries livelihoods in Sri Lanka post-tsunami ITDG South Asia, January 2005 1
! There are approx. 600 landing sites which have been badly affected (numbers not known).! A large number of boat yards that produce boats for the fishing community is also very badly damaged. Small scale fishing communities are among the poorest communities in the country and their livelihoods have been decimated. Proposal: ITDG proposes to use its experience in the fisheries sector to work with the national level rebuilding programmes as well as isolated efforts by NGOs and local organisations to rebuild small scale fishing. For this purpose we will draw on the ITDG Group network of expertise in fisheries to: 1. Provide specific expertise on rebuilding/replacement/repair of fishing boats and fishing gear to cater in particular to small scale fisheries ITDG proposes to use its experience on small scale fisheries technologies to provide expertise to assist in the boat rebuilding processes being implemented by other organisations such as the FAO, CEY-NOR Foundation and the Ministry of Fisheries and other NGOs. CEY-NOR has highlighted the need for:! Expertise on building / repair of fibre glass boats and multi day boats.! Tools and equipment for boat yards that are damaged.! Setting up of additional boat building / repair factories on a short term basis.! Service and repair of engines that have been affected due to water. ITDG will include providing expertise to upgrade equipment and methods used by small scale fishing communities, to address pre-disaster and post-disaster issues and problems in fisheries sector. 2. Build capacity in the small scale fisheries sector in the rebuilding process ITDG will provide expertise inputs and help organise training of new engineers and on the job training for technicians and involve them in the rebuilding process. ITDG will focus on maximising the involvement of fisheries communities themselves in the rebuilding process. For example, ITDG proposes to:! Emphasise the rehabilitation and re-resourcing of local boat builders. The small grp oru is the most common craft in Sri Lanka and supports the most livelihoods and families. 12000 orus need replacement and small yards know how to build them. ITDG will seek ways to support small yards in terms of funds and materials, new sheds to work in, and increasing workers (e.g. so that one worker trains a helper).! Promote and create opportunities for small scale entrepreneurs to build some of the 17-23' craft. There are many small yards and boat repair sheds around the coasts that could never afford to gear up for production of boats. While there is a need for speed of production, rebuilding can also facilitate the emergence and scaling up of more small businesses rather Draft: rebuilding fisheries livelihoods in Sri Lanka post-tsunami ITDG South Asia, January 2005 2
than only enlarging the big established boat builders and making it even harder for small ones to enter and compete.! Establish a central training centre to boost skills of artisanal builders and then help them set up in their villages.! Create a network of associated small boat builders and supply them with materials at advantageous rates.! Investigate options to meet the most urgent demand for boats. For example, getting yards in India to build the oru hulls and then ship them to Sri Lanka for fitting out (they need outriggers, masts, booms, oars, sails etc all of which can more easily be done locally) (There would need to be strict quality control checks at the Indian yards.! Involve poor fishing communities, who have such a high stake in coastal and marine resource management, in natural resource management activities. Coastal resource management for sustainable livelihoods of communities dependant on coastal and marine resources has always been a challenging task. Concerns of over exploitation by large commercial interests (including international fishery interests) have been experienced over past years and coastal resources management and conservation programmes have been introduced. The tsunami disaster would have affected these programmes as well as coastal resources. Therefore, programmes on rebuilding livelihoods of coastal communities should take into account coastal resource conservation and management as an integral part of such programmes. 3. Enhance livelihood options for small scale fishing communities: ITDG will look at a range of options to expand and enhance income generation for small scale fishing communities, such as through post harvest fish processing. Draft: rebuilding fisheries livelihoods in Sri Lanka post-tsunami ITDG South Asia, January 2005 3
Boat Building in Jaffna This report is based on the field visit to Tsunami affected villages, refugee camps, boat yards and discussions with those affected by Tsunami, discussions with OOTRU officials. Places visited: Thumpalai east village and the relevant refugee camp at the village school OOTRU organisation in Point Pedro Ajasmine Boatyard run by a private entrepreneur as a hobby. His three children, Doctor, Engineer and Accountant, all are abroad SM boatyard in Thumpalai east village (managed by a group of women) Gurunagar Development Society Boatyard Women Boat builders Background of the village: The village Thumpalai east of Point Pedro Fisheries Inspector Division has total of 230 families of which 60 are very poor (as per the classification of OOTRU). They have been displaced since 1997 and have been resettled in this village in year 2002. Due to the recent tidal waves it is reported that 33 people are dead and 20 missing. A total of 140 houses were totally damaged and 40 were partially damaged. OOTRU has been working with the above mentioned 60 poorest of the poor families to uplift their socio-economic levels through introducing livelihood options and assisting children s education. Draft: rebuilding fisheries livelihoods in Sri Lanka post-tsunami ITDG South Asia, January 2005 4
Children playing in a camp Present set up: At the moment this village community stays in a school maintained by TRO with government assistance. OOTRU with their own funds plan to construct temporary huts for them to allow the school to reopen as soon as possible. Damages due to Tsunami: OOTRU has conducted a survey among the 60 families they are working with and the damages to their houses and livelihoods are as follows. No of families: 60 No of houses fully damaged: 28 No of houses partially damaged: 19 No of Kattumarams (traditional wooden boats) lost: 31 No of CEY-NOR type boats lost: 4 No of families lost fishing nets: 27 No of huts damaged: 10 No of small boutiques damaged: 1 Draft: rebuilding fisheries livelihoods in Sri Lanka post-tsunami ITDG South Asia, January 2005 5
CEYNOR type boats Important characteristics of the village: # 14 women-headed households (out of 60) this is due to the either the husband being dead or missing due to the war or being abandoned by their husbands taking advantages of the war situation in the area to migrate to other villagers live together with another women. # These women benefit from the fishing industry in 4 ways: o Helping to collect fish from the nets when the boats land in near by beaches they get 1-2 kg of fish o Buy fish from the boats and retail selling in interior villages o Buy fish during the gluts and make dry fish and sell it later o Repairing nets this is seen only among elderly women, young women are reluctant to do this job as it is very tedious # There is one kattumaram boat building small workshop in the village # There is one fibre glass boat yard in the village. This has been severely damaged by the Tsunami and still has the capacity to built boats. The workforce of their boat yard is comprised of mainly women (technicians and the manager). Draft: rebuilding fisheries livelihoods in Sri Lanka post-tsunami ITDG South Asia, January 2005 6
Areas for ITDG intervention: # Rebuilding fisheries livelihood provision of katumarams and fishing gears this can be started in the village workshop with the involvement of the community members. # Train masons in the area on our cost effective housing technology for rebuilding houses in the village. It is mentioned that there are only handful of masons in Jaffna and need more for the reconstruction. They requested to design a training programme to transform helpers (Athweda karayo) to be masons to fill this gap. This is the same scenario with carpenters. # Introducing cycle trailers for women fish sellers to increase their capacity and efficiency. # Long term plans to introduce fish processing technologies/enterprises for the widow families. Kattumaram Jaffna s traditional boat Cost of replacing the fishing boats and fishing gears: Item Units Unit cost Budget Kattumarams 35 35,000 1,225,000 Fishing nets 27x15 3,000 1,215,000 Filed officer (OOTRU) 6 10,000 60,000 Travelling and lodging (ITDG, OOTRU) 120,000 Total 2,620,000 Draft: rebuilding fisheries livelihoods in Sri Lanka post-tsunami ITDG South Asia, January 2005 7
Boat Building in Hambatota This report is based on the field visit to Rakewa, Godawaya, Kirinda, and Pattanagalla. The discussions were made with the affected fishermen, officials of the Cey-Nor and the members of the regional level relief service committees. Places visited: Tangalle fisheries harbour Godawaya fisheries village Kirinda fisheries village and harbour Pattanangalla fisheries village Background of the village: The village located near Mirijjawila, Hambantota. That was a small anchoring place where majority is engaged in either fishing or fisheries related activities. There are nearly 400 families living in this village and 200 are directly involved in fishing. The fishing community of this village were affected by the tsunami through losing their fishing gears and damage to crafts. This village is getting low attention from relief workers as a result of having low number of deaths and other property damages. Village: Godawaya (close to Mirijjawila) No of families: 400 No of fishing families: 200 No of houses fully damaged: 4 No of houses partially damaged: 5 No of houses (huts) damaged: 15 No of 17½ boats damaged: 47 No of Orus damaged: 13 No of Boats damaged but repairable: 25 No of Orus damaged but repairable: 13 Rural roads damaged 200 m Important factors noticed: - Village itself is having craftsmen to rebuild the boats and repair the engines - Only four boats were left after the tsunami. The community use those boats collectively Areas for ITDG intervention: # Rebuilding fisheries livelihood by repairing the boats and providing fishing gear this already started 15 January in collaboration with Cey-Nor with the involvement of the community members # Reconstruct 200 m of rural roads and construct another 200 m # Possibilities for undertaking construction of the 4 houses to be used as pilot models of costeffective housing technologies (If we agree this needs to be discussed and arranged with DS) # Long term plans to introduce fish processing technologies for the fishing families Draft: rebuilding fisheries livelihoods in Sri Lanka post-tsunami ITDG South Asia, January 2005 8
Budget: Item Units Unit cost Budget Repair 25 boats (body) 40 10,000 400,000 Repair engine 40 12,000 480,000 Rural roads 400 m Houses 4 Technical officer (boat building) 6 25,000 150,000 Travelling and lodging for the technical officer 25,000 Total Draft: rebuilding fisheries livelihoods in Sri Lanka post-tsunami ITDG South Asia, January 2005 9