By Sumadhu Weerawarne
The World Bank on Monday said that road access to the Jaffna peninsula would be key to providing much-sought development assistance to the peninsula. "There is a World Bank-Government of Sri Lanka document which sets out the need for land roads for the transport of construction material and personnel. We can only work in the peninsula when this happens," Country Director Dr. Mariana Todorova said at a media briefing yesterday.

A three-member World Bank team headed by MS Todorova, including an engineer and education sector specialist were in Jaffna from August 9 -17 to learn about conditions in the Jaffna peninsula and how WB projects can be funded to include development activity in the Jaffna district. She met with members of the University of Jaffna, religious leaders, judges and NGOs. She said that the bank as a policy did not get involved with projects in conflict areas, but had made an exception in the case of an agriculture project, the North East Irrigated Agriculture Project, a five-year USD 30 million project financed by a WB loan which has been under implementation in the past two years. Following the team’s visit to Jaffna, the project will be extended to de-mined areas in the Jaffna peninsula. This will include rehabilitation of minor irrigation systems and de-silting of ponds.

MS Todorova also commented on the need for improved monitoring of activities by the government implementing agencies, to ensure effective disbursement of development funds. This was especially in relation to two projects, the Teacher Education and Teacher Deployment and the General Education Project and the Health Services Project funded by the WB. Currently the funds are channelled through the Ministry of Provincial Councils, which allocates funding to the Provincial Councils, which in turn directs it to the local level implementors. Asked if the system was at fault for the slow implementation of the projects, she responded that it was far more complex. "It is a situation of the Ministry of Defence rules superseding Government Agents and departments. The point is that security comes first," she said.

She noted that there had been emphasis on the qualitative decline in education due to lack of facilities and proper training of teachers. "There is also a shortage of teachers with a student teacher ratio of 1 to 123 in the peninsula," she said, and commented on the need for the swift disbursement of development funds. She said that the WB would consider support for a distance learning facilities for Jaffna’s administrators and civil society to bridge the digital divide.

On the health front she observed acute shortage of qualified medical doctors, para-medical staff and nurses in Jaffna hospitals, and the lack of essential and even everyday medicine. "Most of the doctors are those who have retired and have been taken back into the service on a contract basis. It is the MSF that is providing surgeons," she said. She noted that Tuberculosis and bowel diseases were on the rise, while there had been a decline in Malaria due to an awareness programme carried out under the WB supported Health Services Project. The WB hopes to fund an awareness campaign to stem the incidence of TB and bowel diseases and AIDS (of which there is no scientific evidence) and to deal with psychological trauma, and the setting up of a Cancer Unit as there is currently no facility for the treatment in Jaffna.

In the social sector she noted that increased pregnancies among girls of 15-17 years, increased rape and prostitution had been reported. She noted the need for the government to improve its targeting and effectiveness in Jaffna. "Despite the presence of 440 Samurdhi officials, Samurdhi recipients were not identified. In addition there are 1500 youth recruited as Development Assistants by the Ministry of Northern Development at a monthly allowance of Rs. 3000, but their roles and responsibilities are not clear," she said. While acceding that providing employment may be useful to prevent youth taking to arms, she observed that there was a need for the government to better plan their involvement in development activities to really benefit the poor people.

On the judicial front she said that the Jaffna court would be one of 25 such which would be developed as model courts under the WB funded Legal and Judicial Reforms project already under implementation.

The government for the past two years has been engaged in drawing up a Framework for Relief, Rehabilitation and Reconciliation, which will then be evaluated by the WB for fund-raising purposes. "This I hope will have practical recommendations for improving health, education and social cohesion..," she said.