CZECH REPUBLIC CHARITY TO BUILD SCHOOL IN SRI LANKA‘S EASTERN PROVINCE AS TSUNAMI RELIEF

By Walter Jayawardhana

The People in Need organiation in Czech Republic has started its work to build this week a large elementary school in Sri Lanka, its largest project in the country, Matej Novák of the organisation told CTK, the official Chech government website .

Making his statement January 31 he said this school is being built in the Tsunami devasted Eastern province of Sri Lanka as a Tsunami relief project. Sri Lanka was severely hit by a powerful tsunami on December 26, 2004 that caused the death and destruction and displaced more than one million people, he said.

The new school will include 500 pupils who now attend the old overcrowded and party damaged building, Novák said.

People in Need will build two school buildings in Kuchchaveli, east Sri Lanka, and it expects to complete the construction in November so that classes can begin on December 1, Novák said.
People in Need has been active in Sri Lanka since 2005.

"Many of our projects in this country focus on education. That is an important element of stability in this region torn by ethnic conflicts," Novák said.

The organisation has already built two new schools, reconstructed five school buildings and is building another school that will serve to 200 students.

Apart from this, People in Need has organised a re-qualification course of seamstresses and is also monitoring the projects of the development of the school and pre-school sector and the programme of the support of English language teachers in the Tirikunamale region, the website said..

All the projects are financed from its SOS Sri Lanka public collection that was launched on January 27, 2004.