Sri Lanka’s top trade chamber has asked its private sector members to ‘adopt’ transit refugee camps, supporting displaced people until they find permanent shelter.
“We have asked the private sector to sponsor some of the camps under government authority because government resources are sorely stretched,” Deputy Vice Chairman of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC), J.
D. Bandaranayake said.
Tidal waves that ravaged Sri Lanka’s coast line a day after Christmas, killed 30,000 people, destroyed homes and buildings and displaced close upon a million.
About 800 refugee camps sprung up shortly after, some in schools closed for Christmas vacation, or on government lands in affected districts.
As the government tries to shift them out into transit camps on un-occupied land until it builds permanent housing, the private sector has been asked to do its bit.
Some companies have voluntarily sponsored camps, with Unilever, Singer, Hayleys, Ceylon Tobacco and Nestle’s already adopting 15 camps amo