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CONTENTS food-for work rotaract project honey moon
June / July 2002
Connecting villages to markets - producing more food
5 km of rural roads plus an additional 2 km access roads that are under construction will connect the villages of Ilankaithurai and Verugal Mugathuvaram DS Office Eachchilampattai. From there access to Seruvila will be much easier. The work started in 2001 and is about to be finalised soon. During the rainy season the area is flooded. The present road needs to be raised by about one foot. Clay is spread and thereafter gravel. The RDS is entrusted with the work. They hire tractor and trailer for transporting the soil. There is hardly any work opportunity during this time of the year and the road work is most welcomed by the village community.
A road network has been established between the villages of Pallikudyiruppu, Ithikulam, Nalloor and Uppural in Muthur DS Division. Altogether, IFSP has constructed and renovated more than 200 km rural roads since August 1998. Most of the roads are either 'inner roads' or access roads to main roads.
At Kalyanapura, Gomarankadawela DS Division, the Behethkawawewa tank was developed by the village community. The bund was raised, two sluice gates and a new main outlet and spill as well as an access road and a culvert were constructed.
In Pulmoddai, Kuchchaveli DS Division, an access road to a minor tank and to the paddy fields is under construction. This area is affected by floods during the rainy season.
During the year 2001 more than 50 culverts were constructed. All material was procured locally and masons from villages were employed. Partners of IFSP are predominantly Rural Development Societies (RDS) and Farmers' Organisations (FO). For each project a technical design is done by the IFSP engineers and a ‘project book’ is established. The IFSP community mobilisers are cooperating with officers from Departments and Divisional Secretariats and the chairpersons of RDSs and FOs.
For the many road improvement projects, the minor tank development programme and land clearing for cultivation, IFSP is making food-for-work (FFW) in the form of a food basket available. The village communities contribute manual labour. FFW is a tool for development. FFW provides employment against a food basket during periods without employment opportunities.
FFW is expected to bridge the food gap in critical months, e.g. between Maha and Yala, when farmers have sold their paddy and have to buy rice in the market for their home consumption. FFW is always tied to rural infrastructure development, such as roads or tanks etc. FFW creates local assets. Many women join in FFW. The food basket may at times be their only source of income. FFW serves most vulnerable groups and helps them to participate in development activities.
The food basket has a value of about Rs. 150 per day and consists of the following: 2 kg rice, 200 g dhal, 200 g gram, 200 g sugar, 1 cake of soap per person per week and Rs. 50 in cash. The cash amount should prevent people from selling the food basket at a lower price at the boutique. The difference between the value of the food basket and the average local wage rate is considered the contribution from the village communities. The average daily labour task is 6 working hours. Assuming an average village wage rate of Rs. 250 for unskilled labour, the contribution from the beneficiaries is Rs. 100 per labour day. IFSP expects contributions between 25% and above 50%.
The items for the food basket are bought locally. Procurement from MPCS at the locations of the respective projects is preferred by IFSP, as long as the MPCS are competitive in price. The procurement from local produce and from local traders or MPCS stimulates the local economy. Furthermore, it is ensured that the food items meet the requirements of the village communities.
FFW is also applied for unskilled labour at the construction sites of the pre-schools Kumpurupitty, Allai Nagar and the schools Vaddavan, Ilankaithurai, Uppural and Seenanveli. The RDS and School Development Societies are partners of IFSP. Their members join in the work. Though construction takes a longer time, it is felt that the identification and ‘ownership’ with these projects increase. The comparatively high quality of the IFSP supported infrastructure projects and the intensive dialogue with the communities aims at motivating them to do the future maintenance. A good example is the establishment of a road maintenance group at 64 Mile Post, Muthur with the help of the IFSP community mobiliser.
For certain larger scale projects like the increase of bunds or the construction of new access roads and, due to the absence of sufficient manpower, machinery is contracted. IFSP always employs local contractors to promote the local and regional economy. However, IFSP would prefer to exclusively provide opportunities for manual work. Only where absolutely necessary, machinery is engaged and as far as possible combined with manual labour.
From 1998 to 2001 the Federal German Government allocated a total of 85 million Rs. as an additional budget line for FFW. A total of 680,000 days of work were effected. Assuming that a maximum number of 20 days FFW are allocated per person, then an estimated total of about 34,000 individuals have received food baskets and have contributed to the creation of infrastructure development. 20 days of FFW provides full subsistence to a family of 5 persons for about 1.5 month.
Keep our beaches clean - Rotaract project top
Rotaract Trincomalee initiated a cleaning programme for the beach at Dutch bay and the Kanniya hot wells sponsored by IFSP
May - June honey moon top
Our engineers Manoharan and K. Devarajah got married in May and June 2002. They had their wedding receptions at the Silver Star Hotel, Trincomalee. IFSP staff congratulates.
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