10/1/2007

Three Civil Military Co-ordination Liaison Officers (CMCLOs) to deal with issues on access and humanitarian assistance in the East-North and Wanni were appointed by the Consultative Committee of Humanitarian Assistance (CCHA) chaired by Disaster Management and Human Rights Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe in consultation with MP and Senior Advisor to the President Basil Rajapaksa and Defence, Public Security, Law and Order Ministry Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa.

It was agreed that with the three CMCLOs, a representative from the Joint Operations Headquarters (JOH) would be present at all CCHA meetings to communicate effectively and implement policy decisions at operational level. The UN and INGOs also nominated focal points who would directly liaise with the CMCLOs on the field.

The five sub-committees, under the CCHA updated the members on the latest achievements. The Commissioner General of Essential Services (CGES) informed the Ministry of Nation Building and Estate Infrastructure Development (MNB & EID) to send 3,800T of food to Jaffna while another 1,500 T will be sent in the next consignment. This would cover the food requirements of 120,000 people for 2 1/2 months.

A stock of 4,038,200 diesel litres, 289,800 petrol litres and 510,300 kerosene litres is available in the Peninsula. Consignments carrying 3,800T of fertiliser have been sent to Jaffna.

Fifty-six thousand bags of cement will be sent to improve livelihood opportunities for the people. Educational supplies by UNICEF have also been included in a shipment to Jaffna.

The CGES has planned shipments for essential items and construction material up to January 2008. A total of 156,944 mt of essential and non-food items have been sent to Jaffna from September 2006 to September 2007.

Courtesy : Daily News