In the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami, communities along Sri Lanka’s North and East coast faced the daunting task of rebuilding their lives. From 2005 to 2010, the ADB-NECCDEP North & East Coastal Community Development Project, implemented by AOF/AEL, became a lifeline of renewal and hope. Using the strong foundation of the earlier Community Development Project—and supported by an ADB grant of LKR 42 million—the initiative reached deeply into villages where livelihoods had been shattered.
Farmers who had lost their fields, small and medium entrepreneurs striving to restart, and women seeking income through home-based work were all given a pathway forward. Through skills training, the formation and strengthening of production societies, social welfare support, trauma counselling, and adult education, the project helped families restore not just income, but dignity.
Across 55 villages in Ampara and Batticaloa, more than 7,000 men and women took part in 276 practical programmes. These ranged from small-scale agriculture, paddy cultivation and animal husbandry to fish processing, handicrafts, sewing, screen printing, and the production of food items and herbal products.
By the end of its five-year journey, the project had transformed scattered hardship into collective resilience—strengthening communities to stand on their own once again.
