Through the Aquaculture Development Project, Pledge to Restore community empowerment to create employment opportunities for local communities and foster sustainable Livelihood in Ampara District in Sri Lanka.  The rationale for implementing the project is to utilize the vast potential for developing inland aquatic resources to ensure food security and uplift the socioeconomic status of the rural populations in the area to reduce poverty.  Ampara District in Sri Lanka is the most backward area. It is a war-torn area with people living below the poverty line.

The above project is ongoing in a natural tank with 20 – 25 acres of capacity for fish farming. This project will boost domestic freshwater fish production.  The tank contains fish surrounded by natural forests and hills. Therefore, the food for the fish is found naturally in the Lake. The water in the tank holds a temperature of about 32°C annually, and rainfall is across three months at the tail end of the year.  The water discharge system in the tank is available during monsoons and summers. The tank water is maintained not less than 8ft during summer.

Project Background – Cultivating Fish Seeds in Natural Water.

Kanchirankuda is a remote village in the Ampara District, and people living below the poverty line with scarce employment opportunities. During the war, this district suffered a massive setback in terms of economic development.

The Rufus tank in Thirukovil Divisional Secretariat is 16km west of Thirukovil. Kanchirankuda GN has 125 families living in this area. It is a live litigation for 66 families in Rufus Tank. It is best to implement the freshwater Fish Culture Scheme to improve the living standards of the people here.  The foremost livelihood opportunity of the people in the district is agriculture and fishing. Wage labour is excessively available in this area, lacking financial resources to meet and sustain available options. The people in the area have low self-esteem due to extreme poverty.

SHORT-TERM GOALS

1. Familiarize the farmer with the multiple uses of water stored in lakes, ponds, and small impediments.

2. Our viewpoint is insufficient awareness of the importance of “harvesting water,” particularly in the Ampara district, with well-defined rainy and dry periods.

3. Developing the capacity of farmers so that, through their observations and reasoning, they can solve limitations to the implementation of rural aquaculture projects, thereby improving the productivity of household farm units.

4. We believe many farmers have not developed the independent capacity to run their projects due to a lack of financial resources. Thus, we aim to convert the idling resources into productive resources.

5. Incorporating aquaculture activities within production systems for terrestrial plant and animal species under a context of diversification makes farm production systems more sustainable.

6. Contributing to the diversification and enhanced nutritional value of family diets.

7. Securing farmers and their families in their local communities, working to obtain optimal yields from exploiting their land, and avoiding their migration to other areas seeking opportunities, with the associated social and economic problems.

ECONOMIC, ENVIRONMENTAL, PHYSICAL, SOCIAL, CULTURAL OR AESTHETIC IMPACT

1. Positive employment opportunities for women and men to combat poverty

2. Build high self-esteem in the poor people who have been victimized during the long-standing civil war.

3. Health of the environment – Cleaning up areas of contamination.

We are improving learning outcomes and social and economic development interventions in low- and middle-income families living in Ampara District.

LONG-TERM GOALS

1. They are achieving the capacity of farmers to market their agricultural products, including those of aquaculture origin, which contributes to income generation.

2. Due to their long traditions of practicing rural aquaculture, countries from the Asian region are more successful in generating income from this activity.

3. Contributing to managing micro-basins using sustainable practices that help stabilize water resources, improve ecological conditions, and maintain biodiversity.

4. They plan to reduce external technical assistance so that farmers take complete control of their production projects.