Local, natural resources ensure livelihoods for returnee communities in Eastern Sri Lanka

BATTICALOA [ACTED News] – Palmyra palm trees dot the Sri Lankan landscape and now the people of Ampilanthurai are benefitting from a new income generating activity using the leaves of these national trees. In partnership with a local NGO, the Sri Lanka Foundation, ACTED has provided the Palmyra Production Centre with the basic equipment needed to make Palmyra handicrafts including baskets and hats, with the support of EuropeAid. Six women have so far been trained in this vocation and are now working at the centre to earn an income for their families. The guarantee of this income generating activity is all the more important for these communities having returned to their homes in 2008 after being displaced in 2007 by the Sri Lankan conflict.