COLOMBO (IRIN): Titusinder af krigsenker får ikke hjælp. Grunden er pengemangel, siger myndighederne.
There are 89,000 widows in the north and east, Mohamed Hizbullah, the deputy minister for child development and women’s affairs, told IRIN.
“Where do we find money to restore livelihoods? My ministry does not have the needed funds to do this… Funds are our biggest problem to commence major support programmes for widows.”
He said the government was providing 800 women in the eastern town of Batticaloa with self-employment training. The programme would be expanded to nearby Kilinochchi by the end of the year, he added.
The UN Industrial Development Organization has put aside US$800,000 to fund microcredit and small business support to widows.
“There is a huge need for providing sustainable livelihoods for thousands of widows and we are doing our best,” said the agency’s national programme coordinator, Sarath Abeysundara.
