UNDP stresses rapid financing for Sri Lanka for post-Ditwah recovery

Colombo, Jan 14 (PTI) Flagging widespread economic fallout following the disastrous Cyclone Ditwah, the UNDP on Wednesday called for support to restore infrastructure and livelihoods, particularly for informal workers, and highlighted the urgency of accessible financing for the most vulnerable.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) assessment, released here, also called for strengthening the climate and disaster resilience of enterprises and industries as the country transitions from emergency relief to recovery and reconstruction.

In the country’s deadliest disaster since the 2004 tsunami, more than 600 people died in rains, floods and landslides as Cyclone Ditwah struck Sri Lanka on November 26.

An initial assessment had estimated that floodwaters inundated nearly 20 per cent of the country's land area, exposing approximately 2.3 million people.

Building on that analysis, the qualitative assessment findings released on Wednesday pointed to deep and widespread recovery needs, with many communities lacking the materials, labour, and financing required to rebuild, the report says.

UNDP said the findings highlight the need for continued support to restore infrastructure and livelihoods, particularly for informal workers and small businesses while strengthening the climate and disaster resilience of enterprises and industries as the country transitions from emergency relief to recovery and reconstruction.

The UN body's assessment also highlighted widespread economic fallout.

A large majority of respondents (93 per cent) reported that livelihoods had been affected in their area, citing crop and livestock losses, job losses and business closures, including in the informal sector, which employs a large share of Sri Lanka’s workforce.

Key recovery needs include support for micro enterprises, access to low interest loans and capital for small businesses to rebuild their infrastructure and stocks.

More than half of those interviewed reported that vulnerable groups, such as older people, persons with disabilities and female-headed households, were among those affected.

The most common coping mechanisms included government aid or support (reported by 76 per cent of respondents), followed by assistance from international organisations at 45 per cent, and informal lending at 40 per cent.

These patterns point to rising household debt stress, with implications for both household welfare and the pace of recovery for micro and small enterprises.

Respondents also identified shortages of construction materials, limited availability of skilled labour, and funding constraints as obstacles to rebuilding damaged infrastructure, while citing delays in approvals and weak coordination between institutions as slowing recovery efforts.

Environmental and health risks emerged as additional concerns, with local officials reporting water contamination, soil erosion, and damage to ecosystems, pointing to longer-term climate and public health impacts.

The qualitative assessment, based on key informant interviews with 510 local officials, business leaders, and community representatives across 85 divisional secretariat divisions in the 22 most affected districts.

It found that 95 per cent of respondents reported damage to residential, transport, industrial or community infrastructure within their area, with housing and roads most frequently cited.

The report quotes the UNDP Sri Lanka chief Azusa Kubota as saying, “We commend the Government of Sri Lanka’s announcement on plans to provide LKR 95 billion in support to MSMEs, including a 3 per cent concessional loan scheme, which is a crucial step in accelerating recovery.” “At the same time, it is essential that we prioritise support for the many that operate outside formal systems—those who often remain unseen yet form the backbone of the local economy,” he said.

Earlier, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) released a country brief on December 22 that said that the floods destroyed agricultural land, standing crops, livestock and fisheries assets and household food stocks.

An estimated 2,27,000 farmers, mostly smallholder rice producers, were affected, incurring significant livelihood losses while the total losses in the fishery sector were valued between 20.5 and 21.5 billion LKR.

It added that over 1,06,000 hectares of paddy, the staple food, were partially or completely destroyed.

In the immediate aftermath of the disaster, the government had said USD 6-7 billion would be required to fund the recovery effort.

Sri Lanka's parliament was on December 18 told that LKR 500 billion would be additionally needed to restore livelihoods of those affected due to the devastating Cyclone Ditwah. PTI CORR NPK NPK