Intermittent monsoon rains since December 20 have caused severe flooding in central and northeastern Sri Lanka, displacing 207,608 people from their homes, mainly in the districts of Ampara, Badulla, and Batticaloa. Farms, roads, and other infrastructure have been heavily damaged, and there have been reports of 1 death and 3,924 fully and partially collapsed homes.
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) expedited emergency supplies to Sri Lankan flood victims, in response to a request from the government of Sri Lanka to the Japanese government.
Supplies worth 14 million yen arrived in Colombo on December 28 from JICA's warehouse in Singapore, including 20 tents, 150 sleeping mats, 10 water purifiers, 10 water reservoirs (capable of holding 2,000 liters), 20 tarpaulin sheets, and 600 portable water tanks.
The Sri Lankan government has earmarked an emergency budget of 33 million rupees for relief activities by the Ministry of Resettlement and Disaster Relief Services and other ministries. On December 27 it also issued an official appeal to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the United Nations Development Programme seeking assistance from other organizations and governments.
JICA has been busy during 2007-the twentieth anniversary of the Japan Disaster Relief program-providing emergency aid for major natural disasters to 18 countries, in addition to dispatching medical personnel and offering rebuilding assistance in troubled areas around the world.
JICA has been particularly active in recent months, dispatching a team of experts to the Republic of Korea to advise on how to remove the spilled oil and provide oil-absorbing materials, and also sending relief supplies to victims of flooding in Papua New Guinea, Tropical Storm Noel in the Dominican Republic, Hurricane Felix in Nicaragua, flooding in Africa, and the massive magnitude-8.0 earthquake in Peru.