• Urges building back better in a climate-resilient manner with river embankment protection 

Following Cyclone Ditwah and the subsequent floods and landslides, it is essential that all those displaced have a roof over their heads and are protected, the UN Resident Coordinator in Sri Lanka, Marc-André Franche said.

Responding to a question raised by The Daily Morning during a media briefing held in Colombo yesterday (11) at the UN in Colombo, Franche stressed that every person who had lost shelter as a result of the disaster must be provided with one. “Many houses have been destroyed, and the Government needs to identify new locations for the affected families. What is important for us at the moment is to ensure that every person who does not have a roof over their heads has one,” he said. He explained the Government must find alternative land for many whose homes had been destroyed, including those who had been living in unauthorised settlements. “Identifying suitable land would take time. The priority for us right now is not to resolve the entire housing and land issue. The priority is to ensure the thousands of people who have lost their homes have a roof over their heads and are protected while the Government works on immediate and long-term solutions,” Franche said.

Franche noted the situation remained highly complex and varied greatly depending on local conditions and the locations. “It is appropriate for homeowners to clean and rebuild where possible. However, people affected along riverbanks, for instance, where they had settled illegally, are being provided with legal settlements,” he noted. He added the Government was very conscious of the need to prevent affected persons from returning to the same unsafe locations and facing similar risks in future disasters. “It is therefore important for the authorities to find solutions — either by relocating them to State-owned land or through alternatives provided by the Housing Ministry”.

Referring to the situation in the hill country, where landslides had caused extensive destruction, Franche said that a significant number of houses had been damaged and access roads blocked. “Here too, the solutions will differ. But, the focus must be on clearing the large debris and reopening roads so that people can regain access to their homes.”

Moreover, he noted the world is not well prepared for such disaster situations. We are seeing a reduction in financing for the humanitarian response, he lamented. He said that countries had other priorities.

“Clearly, around the world, we are seeing more and more extreme weather including cyclones and floods. It is clear that in the next decade the world is going to suffer a lot more of these disasters. And, we are not prepared,” he lamented further.

Franche said the UN was advocating not only to build back better but also to build back in a way that is climate-resilient. “That is why it is so important the Government does not allow people to resettle in areas that are vulnerable to flooding. “We should also build this kind of protection on the sides of the Kelaniya and other rivers so that people are protected from future flooding”.