Report on Trip to Sri Lanka By NGO TECH Outreach, Malaysia

REPORT ON TRIP TO SRI LANKA BY PROJECT SRI LANKA TEAM: 27th SEPTEMBER 2013 to 9th OCTOBER 2013

Team:
Dr. Selvamalar Ayadurai, President
Amaravathi Navaratnam: Head, Project Sri Lanka
Suriakumar Arulampalam: Fund Raising, Project Sri Lanka
Manohary: Business Coach Moderator
Murali Jayakanthan: Project Coordinator
Objectives of the Trip:1. To train 40 women headed households funded by TECH Outreach under the Omanthai Project.
2. To train 70 beneficiaries funded by NTSF under the Norwegian Project.
3. To visit the homes of 60 women headed households funded by TECH in Omanthai to assess their business progress.
4. To give out loans to 40 women headed households in Omanthai.
5. To distribute 100 water filters in Omanthai.
6. To meet the Governor of the Northern Province to seek approval for Medical Camp.
7. To meet the children sponsored by TECH under the Sponsor A Child Programme.
Day 1:  27th Sep 2013Colombo to Vavuniya. Meeting with RWF at 4.30 p.m. at the RWF Office.

Day 2: 28th Sep & 29th Sep 2013Training 70 NTSF Beneficiaries at Ambaalkulam and Konavil on Business Management.

Day 3: 30th Sep 20131)        Meeting at RWF Office with the whole RWF Team on the TECH OUTREACH         MODEL (TOM), Systems and Processes for the Savings and Credit Scheme,         and Sponsor a Child Programme. Audited RWF Accounts. Identified         "gaps" and discussed solutions for better communication and response.

2)        House Visit to some of the 60 beneficiaries under the Omanthai Project. All         beneficiaries are prompt in their weekly repayments and their businesses         show progress and profit within 2 months.

3)        Meeting with the children sponsored under the RWF Sponsor a Child         Programme.

Day 4: 1st October 2013Training the new 40 beneficiaries under the Omanthai Project. Topics covered were the Grameen Model, the Savings & Credit Scheme System, 7 characteristics of a successful woman entrepreneur and key factors for a successful start up of a business venture.
Day 5: 2nd October 2013In Jaffna at the CFCD Office assessing systems and processes under the CFCD Sponsor a Child Programme and providing feedback for improvement.

Workshop for 32 women headed households and girls affected by war from 21 villages from 4 districts in the Northern Province.
The women belong to WANT (Women Action Network for Transformation), and NGO affiliated with CFCD.

The training covered Change and Leadership.

Problems highlighted by the women were:
-  Security for women headed households from the Army.
-  Livelihood assistance.
-  Land occupied by the Army.
-  Children's education affected because children can't get to go to Universities

   due to poverty.
-  Women going overseas to work and thus creating a host of family problems.
-  Child Abuse.
-  Child Labour.
-  Alcohol consumption by the men and children.
-  Water problem in Karainagar in the villages of Oori , Thoppakaddu, Pitti Elai,

   Kalaboomi.
-  Unfair Unemployment.
-  Psychological problems.
-  Irresponsible Husbands.
-  Young Marriages resulting in divorce and abortions.

Visited the village of Oori in Karainagar to look at the proposed water supply scheme project. The children in Oori suffer from lack of clean drinking water and they have to buy water for SLR 35.00 every other day. TECH is looking at repairing the existing tank and water well to supply drinking water to approximately 316 families which is about 1500 people.
Day 6: 3rd October 2013Visited the children under the CFCD Sponsor a Child Programme in Suhanthirapuram, Vallipunam and Uthaarkaddu in Mullaitivu. More than 50 children came to a common centre to meet members of TECH and share their feedback.

Day 7: 4th October 2013

Disbursement of Funds to 40 beneficiaries, meeting all 100 beneficiaries together and distribution of 100 new water filters, in the 3 villages in Omanthai.

Meeeting with Mr. Thiru at Hotel Swarka over the possibility of begiinning a Rice-Mill venture for war widows following Sivan Arul Illam’s Model at the Vocational Traiining Institute at Vavunniya

Day 8: 5th October 2013

Training at Ambaalkulam (Leadership & Team Building).  The morning session was conducted by Mr. S.P. Amalrasa - Asst. Director of Planning (Karachi) and Mr. Ketheeswaran - Deputy Director of Planning.  The delivery by Mr. Ketheeswaran was excellent.  The afternoon session was conducted by the TECH team with Murali organising the games and Suria and Amara summing up the relevant ideas that were put across. Mr. Ketheswaran also helped.

Later the TECH team visited 5 children sponsored by RWF at Othiyamalai.  4 children turned up. They were Sivamohan, Kugadhas, Jena and Nitharshan.  Vijayakumar’s mother came to represent her son and Kajan’s father came to represent his son. The village has been adopted by the Swiss Solidarity Organisation.  Brick houses, toilets etc. are being built.  Water is obtained from a well at the temple.  Children can study at this village until Grade 5, after which they need to attend school which is 5 to 6 miles away.

Day 9: 6th October 2013

Training at Konavil by Suria and Murali on Leadership & Team Building.  The morning session was done by Mr. Amalrasa and Mr. Ketheeswaran in the afternoon session..

Children’s Day Celebration organised by CFCD in Veerasingam Hall, Jaffna, attended by Amara and Manohary. 1,200 children attended this function organised by CFCD.  The function commenced promptly at 10.00 am with the invited guests lighting the Kuthu Villakku. The children from the various districts presented songs, dramas and dances which was interspersed with speeches from selected persons.  TECH Outreach’s Sponsor A Child beneficiary, Ajeeba, gave a speech on parents role in a child’s upbringing and highlighted the plight of the children who were left at foster homes while parents went to foreign countries in search of work.  The speakers, most of whom were Government Officers spoke of the need for parents’ awareness of Children’s Rights and the importance of parents monitoring the children. Madam Amara spoke of TECH Outreach’s Sponsor A Child Program which would be increased to 100 children in 2014 and also touched on the plight of the refugee children in Malaysia.

We made a visit to Nagapooshani Amman Temple at Naina Thivu on our one day of rest, had lunch there.  The boat trip to this place was a real risk that we took.  They actually overload the boat.

Day 11: 8th October 2013

Training at Ambaalkulam on Value Chain Management. Dr Kanthan - a coordinator and lecturer at a University conducted an extremely lively workshop which kept the participants on their toes every minute. The TECH team conducted the afternoon session.

Day 12: 9th October 2013

Training at Konavil on Value Chain Management. The session began with games by the TECH Team, followed by Dr Kanthan’s session.

TECH Team’s en-route to Colombo.

Day 13: 10th October 2013

In Colombo

Day 14:  11th October 2013Back in Malaysia