Norwegian NGO hands over yet another reconstructed school

By Sinniah Gurunathan, Trincomalee correspondent

The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), which has its headquarters in Oslo, last Tuesday handed over its 22nd reconstructed tsunami-destroyed school to the education authorities.

The school is known as Sri Mathuma Ambal Vidiyalayam located at Alles Garden, a suburb north of Trincomalee. With the handing over of the school, NRC has completed the reconstruction of 22 schools out of 30 destroyed in the tsunami and which it undertook to reconstruct under the tsunami recovery programme.

This programme, funded by the Norwegian Foreign Ministry, covers the reconstruction of schools in Matara, Hambantota, Ampara, Batticaloa, Trincomalee and Mullaitivu districts.

Programme Co-ordinator Ms Marit Backe, Country Director Joern Kristensen and Project Manager Kristen Hjorth Glerup participated in the handing over event.

The school was closed in 1990 due to the internal conflict. It was re-opened in 1995 to provide education to children of families displaced in the conflict and sheltered in the UNHCR welfare centre located at Alles Garden.The welfare centre and the school were destroyed in December 2004 tsunami.