Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator's Speech on World Humanitarian Day

Hon. Basil Rajapaksa, Minister for Economic Development
Hon. A. H. M. Fowzie, Minister of Disaster Management
Hon. Rishad Bathiudeen, Minister of Industry and Commerce

Her Excellency Patricia Butenis, Ambassador of the United States of America
His Excellency Peter Hayes, British High Commissioner

Excellencies, Government officials, Heads of UN agencies, NGO colleagues, my colleagues from the UN family in Sri Lanka and friends It is my pleasure to welcome you here this morning to mark World Humanitarian Day.

We are honoured to have with us today the Hon. Minister for Economic Development, Mr. Basil Rajapaksa and several of our key government counterparts. Our partnership and collaboration with you is key to supporting the Sri Lankan Government’s efforts to help the most vulnerable people in this country.

Why are we marking this day?

First, for a sad reason. Seven years ago terrorists bombed the United Nation Headquarters in Baghdad, killing 21 of the best and brightest humanitarian workers from Iraq and from around the world, including Sergio de Mello, UN Under Secretary General and a man who had led some of the most complex humanitarian operations in the world.Many others were injured, including a number of colleagues, who work within our team here.

Secondly for more positive reasons.Over the last year and half, through a broad partnership in support of Sri Lankan national efforts, hundreds of thousands of people who had to flee from fighting to safety, were given humanitarian assistance.Difficult, hard, and urgent work was done by Sri Lankans – whether from government, non-governmental organizations, and the security forces, and by people from countries all over the world, working for organizations in the UNcountry team, and international NGOs – saved lives, and helped people get back their strength to rebuild their normal lives.Funding for this work came from the Government, people throughout Sri Lanka, from governments and people throughout the whole world.There were many challenges, many difficult times, times when people become frustrated.

Ultimately through hard work, through good cooperation, through applying humanitarian principles and through the efforts of the effected people themselves – the corner was turned and people regained the capacity to start returning and rebuilding their lives. They and everyone else in country have the chance to use the opportunities from peace.We look forward to supporting you now to rebuild and recover, and lay a firm foundation for safe lives free from need for all Sri Lankans.

A few examples of what was done.

• In the first half of this year, food was provided to a half million people.
• 130,000 students in the north received mid-morning school meals.
• 40,000 families who returned received a shelter grant of Rupees 25,000 per family.
• 92,800 families received non-food item packages.
• During 2009 and this year, almost 300,000 displaced people got access to safe water, proper sanitation and more… resulting in reduced outbreaks of waterborne and sanitation related diseases From January to May humanitarian operators from both international NGOs and the Government, cleared 123 km sq of land.
• In return areas, 2,915 dug wells were cleaned and 515 upgraded under the Cash for work scheme
• 19,000 household were provided with agriculture, fishery and livestock supplies
• 75,000 acres of abandoned paddy land and 17,000 acres of abandoned land is being targeted for cultivation.
• Disease outbreaks in Menik farm were controlled
• From figures of up to 30%, the prevalence of severe acute malnutrition in children under-five in IDP sites was reduced to 2% and remained stable.
• 57,673 students are registered in newly opened schools
• 3,219 houses for returning families were constructed / repaired.  

In short…. much has been done by a range of humanitarian workers in different places and working for many organizations and parts of the government.  

However, as all of us know, there is much more to be done – recently returned people are still vulnerable, especially until livelihoods are restored, and people are still displaced both in Menik Farm, and in other places as long term IDPs.But the finish line is in sight - and we hope that as the issues these people face become ones of development, future humanitarian work will only be needed for people affected by natural disasters.  

In doing humanitarian work it is important to improve awareness of and respect for the principles according to which this work is conducted: humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence.It is important to remember that this work is universal and the most humanitarian workers are from the countries which are affected – not from the north, south, west or east part of the world, but from the country itself.Humanitarian work must meet its main objectives – saving lives, but it should be also be done in ways that build national capacity, while drawing on the best international experience.

This day is being commemorated through the world – we are humanitarian workers in many places. This is true especially in Pakistan right now and where many are working to help the hundreds of thousands of people hit by unprecedented floods in Pakistan.It is also true in Haiti where humanitarian workers are supporting Haitians who are trying to rebuild after a devastating earthquake earlier this year.In both place Sri Lanka is playing a role – through contributing supplies to the Pakistan relief work, and through hundreds of Sri Lankans who serve as part of the UN mission in Haiti.

Here in Sri Lanka, we look forward to supporting you now to rebuild and recover, and lay a firm foundation for safe lives free from need for all Sri Lankans. Thank you

Introductory remarks by the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator at the Launch of Asia Pacific Human Development Report on Gender Equality

2010 marks the 20^th anniversary of UNDP’s Human Development Report. The first HDR was launched in May 1990 and established the beginning of a yearly tradition. The Report marked a departure from the prevailing orthodoxy that suggested that economic growth was an adequate and sufficient means by which to assess progress in human well-being. Instead, the HDR said “The expansion of output and wealth is only a means. The end of development must be human well-being.”The report was launched to promote new thinking and idea on development. A crucial element in human development is achieving gender equality. Men and women should have equal capabilities (on average) and also equal opportunities as men.

Report background:
Despite tremendous economic progress and rapid development in Asia Pacific the region lags behind on gender parity on multiple counts. Overall indicators for economic prosperity, educational attainments and access to healthcare have improved but gender gaps have not closed.In fact, the region as a whole, especially South Asia, ranks near the worst in the world-often lower than sub-Saharan Africa-on basic issues such as protecting women from violence or upholding their rights to property, as well as on indicators in such key areas as nutrition, health, education, employment and political participation. The situation varies considerably in different parts of the region. East Asia and Pacific are much ahead of South Asia. A girl born in South Asia today still has very different life chances compared to her counterpart in East Asia in terms of health status, educational attainments or employment opportunities.

Sri Lanka, however, is performing much better compared to her neighbors in South Asia. Life expectancy for women in Sri Lanka was 74.7 in 2000 -higher than most other countries in South Asia. Over the years, Sri Lanka has consistently shown its commitment to achieving gender equality (Ratification of CEDAW, Passing of Prevention of Domestic Violence Law in 2005). Goal 3 of the MDG talks about gender equality and empowering women. According to the latest MDG report for the country, Sri Lanka is on track to meet all the targets in goal 3. In secondary and tertiary education, the proportion of girls to boys exceeds 100 per cent. In primary education, the country has almost reached gender parity with the ratio of boys to girls reaching 99 per cent. There are significantly high regional variations though. Literacy is low, especially among women on plantations and in low-income rural areas and among the urban poor. Goal 5 of the MDG pertains to improving maternal health. Here again, Sri Lanka is on track to reducing by three-quarters, between 1990 and 2015, the maternal mortality ratio.

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Report focuses on bringing about equality for women with respect to three critical issues-power, voice and rights. Women and economic power:

Equality is good economics but....In the ownership and control of assets and the ability to earn incomes, two fundamental pathways to economic well-being, women still lag far behind men in much of the region and Asia-Pacific as a whole lags behind much of the rest of the world.

The report asserts that lack of women’s participation in the workforce across Asia-Pacific costs the region an estimated US $ 89 billion every year. In Sri Lanka, according to the latest MDG report, the rate of unemployment for women is twice the rate for men and for educated women; the rate is around three times the rate for men. In terms of access to assets including land, bank loans and property other than land, Sri Lanka performs much better than most countries in South Asia with full access to bank loans and property other than land for women. In terms of access to land, the situation could be improved further.

There are considerable wage disparities between women and men in the informal sector. According to the recently released report, in the agricultural sector, for example, women are paid on average Rs. 200/day while men are paid Rs. 350-400/day. In addition, since a large number of women work as migrant domestic workers the chances of exploitation and abuse is much higher especially since there are relatively few laws and organizations that monitor the informal sector The report argues that ensuring equal access to economic power for men and women is not only about women’s rights but is good economics as well-the report claims that raising the proportion of women in the workforce to the rates seen in many developed countries would increase annual GDP in a number of countries.

Women and Political Power:
Access for women to political arena for formulation of more effective and inclusive policies that promote gender equality.

The gaps between the political participation of men and of women in the Asia-Pacific are among the largest in the world. The Pacific sub-region alone has four of the world’s six countries with no women legislators at all. Sri Lanka produced the first woman Prime Minister in the world who served as Prime Minister for 18 years and the first Executive President who governed the country for 11 years. However, the proportion of women members in the national parliament has increased from 3 per cent in 1947 to only 5.8 per cent at present. Women’s representation in the Provincial Councils and the Local authorities is also pretty low. According to recent reports there are only 5 per cent of women members in Provincial Councils and 1.8 per cent in the Local Government offices. The statistics are especially shocking considering that women constitute over 50 per cent of the electorate in the country and the fact that Sri Lanka was the first country in Asia to grant full suffrage rights to women as early as 1931.

UNDP Sri Lanka has supported women’s representation and participation in political processes both at the national and local levels. UNDP’s project on ‘Enhanced Women’s Political Representation and Decision Making’ helped to enhance the capacities of women by developing their leadership, negotiation, networking, planning and other relevant skills in support of their participation in decision-making processes, and entry into governance institutions as well as to sensitize the key stakeholder groups including political parties, press, civil society and the general public, on the key issues related to women’s political empowerment.

UNDP also supported a consortium of NGOs and the Ministry of Women's Empowerment in securing $500k from the UNIFEM Gender Equality Fund to support an intensive programme aimed at mobilising women candidates for the local elections. The programme was designed based on research which identified 'quick wins’ and best practice strategies to facilitate greater involvement of women in politics.

In partnership with UNDP Indonesia, Sri Lanka organized for a group of 12 Sri Lankan women leaders to travel to Indonesia and meet with counterparts to draw lessons from the policies and programmes in place to address the special needs of women and children during a recovery phase. Participants formulated new project ideas to bring together women from the north and south of the country.

UNDP is also supporting a pilot initiative in Ampara. The project will be working with women in civil society groups and government offices to build leadership skills.

The report argues that ‘well-designed’ quotas, that are based on sound laws should be introduced for women representatives and capacity building programmes for first time women leaders be launched to improve the quality of their participation.

Again, Sri Lanka performs considerably well in terms of existing legislation on domestic violence, cases of sexual assault and rape and sexual harassment at workplace. Legal status of women vis-à-vis men is also equal in terms of inheritance laws and marital property rights in cases of divorce. The story is not as positive elsewhere. Nearly half the countries in South Asia, and more than sixty per cent of those in the Pacific, have no laws against domestic violence. Discriminatory laws need to be changed, and the laws will need to be enforced.

UNDP’s Equal Access to Justice (A2J) project helps disadvantaged groups, especially women and conflict-affected communities so that they have increased knowledge of their rights and are able to access and benefit from legal services.

Overall, Sri Lanka is doing considerably well in the region with respect to gender equality. According to the Report, Sri Lanka Gender Related Development Index (GDI) is 0.756 (the GDI ranges between 0 and 1; 0 being minimum and 1 being maximum). In the Asia Pacific region the country is better than most others.

However, there is considerable room for improvement. That is why the report on gender equality comes at an opportune time. With only a few years left for the MDG deadline of 2015 it is high time that world leaders start to pay serious attention to gender equality for the race to achieve the MDGs will never be won unless more is done to achieve gender equality. As UNDP Administrator Helen Clark said recently “The sad truth is that where we see progress towards the MDGs lagging the most is often where the needs and status of women and girls are accorded low priority.”

Need an integrated approach to have women fully benefit from what they have worked hard to do to enjoy their rights, to have voiceand to have power But it is not given... must work for it

Keynote Speech by the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator at the International Women’s Day celebration on March 5, 2010

Why among all the many UN days have we as a UN team decided to mark this day as a special one to observe?Especially why in Sri Lanka where a woman today has many more choices for her life than her grandmother did!

The answer is global….. – and that is important as we are an organization that tries to bring all countries and all people together for action that is significant not just for one country but for the world.And what happened 100 years ago on 8 March had importance for the World.  

2010 marks the 100^th anniversary of International Women’s Day which commenced in 1910 with the second International Conference of Working Women held in Copenhagen. It is a day for people in all countries to the mark the real progress of women in their social, political and economic achievements and to renew our commitment to achieve true equality.It is commemorated in many ways – where I worked, in eastern Europe for eight years it was a national holiday, celebrated by men showing their appreciation for everything women did, and on that day doing some of the domestic work women were doing every day, (unfortunately if not always on the day after!) Unfortunately in some other places I have also worked and lived, little was done – and that often, if not always reflected an unawareness of the issue – and discrimination against women.

Here in Sri Lanka this year the United Nations team in Sri Lanka decided to help commemorate International Women’s Day to highlight the importance of equal rights and equal opportunities for men and women in Sri Lanka and across the globe.Our event is organized by the United Nations inter-agency theme group for gender – and I thank them for the initiative, the hard work and the commitment.A well known columnist today in one newspaper – said that the theme sounded “retro” –like one from 100 years ago.While in many ways, it is no comparison with 100 years ago, in terms of the growth in women’s rights and opportunities – they are still all too often still not equal in most places, including here.

Sri Lankans have indeed accomplished more than most countries in providing fundamental equal opportunities for girls and women such as: the choice for an education, the choice of when to have children, all the choices that come with better health. In terms of comparative measures of women’s health compared with that of men – Sri Lanka is 18^th in the world. In terms of a mixed index of choice (human development) through education, health, and income, Sri Lanka ranks 36^th in the world.

While Sri Lanka is a society which has shown before others that women can hold powerful positions. Whether it be elected prime minister, or a president – it is a society where lawyers, judges, heads of companies are women……, these are unfortunately more the exception than the rule. This is reflected in the gender empowerment measure (GEM) which reveals whether women take an active part in economic and political life. It tracks the share of seats in parliament held by women; of female legislators, senior officials and managers; and of female professional and technical workers - and the gender disparity in earned income, reflecting economic independence.In this measure of empowerment Sri Lanka ranks 98^th out of 109 countries measured.

The gap between women’s’ capabilities, and women’s influence or power in society is among the greatest in the world in Sri Lanka. In short Sri Lanka has done a great deal so that women do have fundamental opportunities for health and education (In fact they are healthier than men and at most levels of education, also ahead of men) but it has not translated these equalities in opportunities into equality in decision making in society.

Now more than ever this is important.As after too many years of conflict, - conflict which affected everyone’s development and opportunities everywhere in the country, there is now a chance to build a lasting peace that brings faster and more equitable development.But for that to happen Sri Lanka cannot afford not to have more women making decisions, in government, in the private sector, in civil society - about the direction of society.More equality of opportunity in decision making will make Sri Lanka more peaceful, more prosperous and happier.

I want to thank especially the members of an imminent panel of speakers and songs which will highlight the global theme as well as the 100^th anniversary of International Women’s Day. The panel discussion will comprise of eminent speakers, Professor Savithri Goonesekere, former Vice Chancellor, University of Colombo, Dr Vinya Ariyaratne, Former Executive Director, Sarvodaya, Mrs Lalitha Dissanayaka, former Secretary to the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and Ms. Ayomi Fernando, Head of Responsible Business Initiatives Unit of the Employer’s Federation of Ceylon. The panel will focus on the issues faced by women in the political, post conflict, plantation and private sectors respectively and explore solutions to the problems they face.

I also want to make a small advertisement.On Monday,which actually is International Women’s Day, the chair of the UN Development Group and Administrator or UNDP, Helen Clark will launch together theIndian Prime Minister, 2010 Human Development Report of Asia – calledPower, Rights and Voice: A Turning Point for Gender Equality in Asia Pacific"UN Sri Lanka will launch this report later this month. I hope what we do today will in a modest way help Sri Lankan women to enjoy full and equal rights and opportunities in all aspects of society – and to have the room to contribute all they have the capability to contribute to a brighter future.

Keynote Speech by the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator at the Effie Awards Sri Lanka 2008

Thanks to SLIM to be here for the Effies.It is privilege to be here to recognize excellence in marketing.  

The first time I worked in Sri Lanka was 1984/85.I came straight from Canada – marketing was interesting, but still seemed a bit archaic.  

This time when I arrived in 2007 – the marketing in many ways was ahead of other places – with some true example of creativity and beauty as fine as anywhere in the world I have seen – truly world class.  

Often you don’t think of marketing and the UN together.But it is relevant for us - we have done rebranding too – and we are sometimes good at communicating (if not exactly marketing) what we are about and convincing people to buy our ideas if not our products.But often we are not – for we actually have the most visible “world brand” but still after 64 years people we are often profoundly misunderstood – as we have been here too.   So I am here also to learn from you!!  

Background:   -The UN works with private sector in many ways. The overarching programme is the UN Global Compactsets out 10 principles through which businesses can do “good business” while still contributing to the development goals agreed at the UN.These principles broadly fit: into good corporate governance, human rights, Environmental awareness and protection, good labour practices and anti-corruption. -

All of this work that the UN does with the corporate sector can be distilled to, broadly is ‘responsibility’ -Responsibility is not a standard or a set of rules that one must feel restricted by but a commitment to “do no harm’ or ‘do the best for all’ in whatever we do as businesses making big decisions or as individuals within those businesses making everyday choices.We believe “responsibility” is also good business, while it also is good for society.  

Ethical Marketing:  

How does this relate to marketing? And why should it matter for you as marketers in Sri Lanka TODAY?

-Sri Lanka is going through a very unique period in its history. The war as everyone knew it for 30 years is over. There is a very real possibility and hope for a just peace and a bright future for Sri Lanka, IF and only if, citizens are willing to work for it, ask for it and live in a way that it becomes possible

-In a post-war context, ethical marketing that is both socially responsible and culturally sensitive can play a very important part in building and sustaining reconciliation -If every campaign and every choice you make asks the question

– ·Can this ad campaign build in message of peace? ·Can it be sensitive to the trails, traumas and hope of all communities living in Sri Lanka?

·Can it highlight some of the deeper challenges and issues that Sri Lanka must fix in building a new Sri Lanka and make Sri Lankans aware and able to address ‘small’ at a community level? This does not mean doing campaigns based on dreamy ideals with the song Imagine playing in the background,nor marketing that does not meet your objective of helping sell a product.But it does mean ensuring that marketing gives, even if it is just through the portrayal of people, positive messages that build trust – rather than as sometimes is done in ad campaigns (American political ones are the best known example) – a negative view of people and life.  

Achieving effective results through ‘ideas that work’?  

 -The Effies reward ‘ideas that work’ or those ideas that achieve REAL results. In Sri Lanka today, can these ‘real’ results be more that selling products or how many people respond to advertising? -Is it possible to measure success, by including, how many people’s minds can be changed about what it means to be truly reconciliatory? YOU can create this opportunity

-So, while congratulating the winners and thanking you for this opportunity to speak to you, I would like to leave you with your own mission statement of becoming a “driving force that enhances business and national value.”  Continue to do this, especially because, in today’s post-war Sri Lanka, the business community has great and unique value and potential to build peace and hope for a more inclusive, prosperous and happy Sri Lanka.

It is privilege to be here today in the home of Sarvodaya for a number of reasons:

 -because of what Sarvodaya has accomplished over more than 50 years, in helping people in communities throughout Sri Lanka to better help themselves. This role is recognized in Sri Lanka, but also recognized world-wide

- and I even studied in university 25 years ago about Sarvodaya as a best practice for fighting poverty and empowering people and communities  

 -because I am able to meet impressive and inspirational people from different walks of life the awardees.  

 -because this is a time when the ideals of peace and unity and brotherhood that Sarvodaya is based on are relevant and needed - and it is a time when the practical proven path of doing this through communities needs to be applied.

I hope I can repay this privilege by sharing with you a few thoughts on how these ideals and this experience could help uplift more Sri Lankans.

I can’t really claim the UN is a village based organization, like Sarvodaya is!!   But people are supposed to be at the centre for the UN too!  

The first words of the UN charter are:“We the peoples of the United Nations determined: -to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war -to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights -to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom. -to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained through sovereign member states.

The founders of the United Nations knew that people had to come first in any programme.  They knew that peace is the central condition for people to be better off.  They knew the path to this was through both human rights and through development - and in an internationally supportive environment.

Right now all Sri Lankans want to build a lasting peace, and friends of Sri Lanka like the UN want to help them do this.  Like in all places when a war is finished, doing this is not easy.  There are wounds to be healed, there is trust to built.   Misunderstandings are easy - we in the UN too sometimes misunderstand our partners, and we are also sometimes misunderstood.

But in the first months after the end of a war, it is the time for broad groups of people to work together to take advantage of a unique chance to make peace lasting and development faster, sustainable and more equitable.   It is a time to build the confidence, the trust and the capacities for this.  The awardees today are a shining example of the skills, talent and commitment needed from a broad range of society to do this and I hope an inspiration and lesson for young people.

I just returned from a visit on Wednesday to Friday to the north.  First to see people at Menik farm,  then to meet people returning to their homes in Mantai West in Mannar, in Thunnakai Division in Mullaitivu and then to  see people returning to Jaffna.  

The Government’s work on moving this forward is commendable and I saw good results - whether it was a better atmosphere in a quieter Menick Farm, or people happy to be back in their home places in each of the three places.  

Of course the challenges are still great before they can get back to a normal life, and they will need strong help from Government, from Sri Lankan civil society and from international partners - and especially the type of work Sarovdaya is the leader in - in uplifting people through village development.  From what I saw I am confident this will happen.  

As the UN charter says the first path towards meeting its ideals is “to practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours”.

But what is perhaps most important is that the Government has taken the bold step to return people and to release them - they have taken the chance for peace.  

 Work, like that Sarvodaya does, and work like the United Nations supports and does, can play an important supporting role in ensuring that this chance is not lost and that ordinary people can make a difference.

Sri Lanka is fortunate to have people like the awardees.  Sri Lanka is fortunate to have organizations, like Sarvodaya.  Let us hope these awards can help energize the awardees and people like them to work even more to translate peace into “better standards of life in larger freedom”.

Thank you for inviting me to speak to this distinguished group this evening. The accomplishments of the Sri Lankan private sector are impressive whether it be in terms of what you produce, how you do it, and who does it – or in term of innovative and inspiring demonstrations of business responsibility.It is an honour for me to be with you today on behalf of the United Nations family.The UN family in Sri Lanka appreciates its long and productive collaboration with the Chamber, whether it be helping implement the Millennium Development Goals, on HIV/AIDS or on work on preventing sexual harassment in the workplace .. or in many other areas.That this work is perhaps not surprising as the values on which the Chamber work are not so different than those of the UN.
 
The values on which the UN system is based on - of respect for individual rights and the right to development; of peaceful approaches; of tolerance and understanding; and of compassasion - are similar to the values on which responsible businesses operate.For the objectives of development, of human rights and of good governance, the UN recognizes the value of the private sector as a natural development partner and a part of the broader social leadership of the country. 

We try to put this into action by settingglobal standards such as the UN global Compact Principles, ILO’s work on labour and Decent work,and UNDP’s support to PS in embedding the MDGs into CSR practices. 

When I was first in Sri Lanka 24 years ago, the challenges Sri Lankan businesses faced were very different from those faced today – that is not surprise!.But the challenges today are also different from just a year ago when I attended your last awards ceremony.The “home-grown” challenges were considerable 24 years ago and last year too! They remain so today. But as one CEO told me last year –they are difficult but we are used to meeting such challenges!But the challenges faced internationally are new …and frightening.With credit tightening, with markets shrinking, with more uncertainty everywhere about the future, and with governments playing more active and different roles, – what is the role for responsible business. Is responsibility a luxury? Download the full text here.

On behalf of the United Nations System in Sri Lanka – both resident and non resident agencies, it is our great pleasure to join together with the Government of Sri Lanka for this first joint annual review of the UN Development Assistance Framework 2008– 2011. 

The UNDAF represents the UN’s commitment to supporting Government in its implementation of the National Development Plan (Mahinda Chintana) and to achieving its development goals, most notably the MDGs where Sri Lanka has already made impressive steps and is on target to meet most if not all the goals by 2015. 

It also represents our commitment to the UN Reform agenda articulated by the former Secretary General Kofi Annan and endorsed by the General Assembly. It represents our commitments to the of the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness which intends to promote national ownership and place the government and national processes at the heart of our support. It is about promoting mutual accountability, strengthening national capacities and the utilization of public financial management systems (ref. HACT). 

 But more fundamentally, today’s dialogue is one of the means to ensure the UN System continues to meets its obligations,an d responds to new opportunities and tonew needs,It is about how the United Nations system in Sri Lanka can be a key partner to the government and people of Sri Lanka.It is about how the United Nations system canbest help Sri Lankans to improve their lives...
Download the full text here.