Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka is a country endowed with astounding beauty: from idyllic beaches, lush green hills and jungles to ancient religious sites and cities. This beauty is contrasted by a particularly turbulent and tragic history. A civil war which erupted in 1983 has cost over 60,000 lives. A cease-fire agreement was signed between the government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE in 2002, only to be followed by the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004, which killed over 30,000 people and displaced thousands more in Sri Lanka alone. Two years later, the conflict has flared up again, with many fearing a return to full-scale war between the government and the LTTE.

FutureWatch became involved in development work in Sri Lanka shortly after the tsunami of 2004. Our programmes in Sri Lanka are currently focussed on child-centred rehabilitation in the East Coast, an area heavily affected by both the tsunami and the civil war.

Kiwanis Visions of Hope Project

Under the leadership of Kiwanis Moncton, New Brunswick, FutureWatch has partnered with the Canadian Kiwanis EC&C Division 18, Kiwanis Colombo, Sri Lanka, and the Sri Lanka Children’s Trust, in implementing the Visions of Hope Project. At the Visions of Hope Children’s Centre in Pandiruppu, a coastal village in the Eastern Province, the Visions of Hope project is serving over 50 children who have lost parents, families, or homes to the tsunami or the civil conflict. Here, the children benefit from such activities as educational programmes, nutritional support, and psychosocial therapy programmes.

For information on how to support the Kiwanis Visions of Hope Project, contact us or click here to donate.