'Improvements needed' in Sri Lankan fishing sector
06/05/2010
A revival of the fishing and farming industries in northern Sri Lanka is required to help returning residents, it has been suggested.
The sectors have been decimated by conflict in the region of Vanni and inhabitants need them to improve in order to regain their livelihoods, Irin News reports.
Muttukrishna Saravananthan, an economist and lead researcher of the Point Pedro Institute of Development in Jaffna District, told the news provider that agriculture and fisheries accounted for 50 per cent of the area's economy before the war.
Neil Buhne, head of the UN in Sri Lanka, commented: "It is extremely important that people have ways of earning an income when they return home, so they can be more self-reliant and have more choices in life."
The information outlet recently reported that there is still a degree of tension in the country between the returning Muslims and their Tamil neighbours despite an agreed end to the violence.
Written by Simon Bassett
