Tsunami devastation a thing of the past for Ruhunu Vijayabha School

The Boxing Day Tsunami of 2004 devastated 13 coastal districts in Sri Lanka; Hambantota being one of the most affected areas. Many local and international organisations offered support to the affected people and the government of Sri Lanka in many ways, from emergency relief to reconstruction and rehabilitation as well as for improving future preparedness, ensuring the return to normalcy within a short time.

Plan Sri Lanka opted to work in close collaboration with the government of Sri Lanka and initiated many construction and rehabilitation projects in Hambantota (in the Southern Province) under its tsunami disaster response programe.

Plan Sri Lanka’s tsunami response program includes several components, namely, health, education, habitat (housing), livelihood, psycho-social support and children’s protection and participation as well as promotion of disaster mitigation and management.

During the catastrophe, many schools in the Hambantota district were fully or partly destroyed. The pupils of these schools temporarily joined schools in the neighbouring communities, creating massive problems of overcrowding and placing a huge strain on resources.

As part of Plan’s tsunami reconstruction program, Mahinda Rajapaksa, then Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, requested Plan to extend its assistance to develop a new school complex in the Tangalle-Beliatta area for 3,000 children that would give preference to the children of the tsunami affected families. The Ruhunu Vijayabha School project was initiated at this juncture. As a result, the foundation stone for the new school was laid on February 5, 2005 by Mahinda Rajapaksa in his capacity as the Prime Minister. That was exactly three years ago, today.

The rest is history. The building of Ruhuna Vijayabha was a difficult and time-consuming job. Yet, the end result is truly awesome. Today, the school complex is a magnificent landmark in the area. Built on 20 acres, the child-friendly Ruhunu Vijayabha School on the Beliatta Road, Tangalle, enrolled the first batch of primary students in February 2007. Considering its facilities and the extent of the school complex, Ruhuna Vijayabha is one of the largest schools in Sri Lanka. The complex comprises a primary section with 30 classrooms, play area, a clay workshop, a library, a counselling room, a sick room, teachers’ staff room and an administrative block. The secondary section has 56 classrooms, science laboratories, a home science laboratory, a computer section, a library, an open assembly hall, an industrial workshop, access ramps for disabled children and a host of other facilities. Besides, there are nine units of staff quarters for the two principals and the two deputy principals of the primary and the secondary schools and for the teachers. Initial work for a playground with the capacity to lay a 400 meter track has been completed and the landscaping of the whole school has also been done. The total cost of the project including the construction of buildings, and furniture, equipment and landscaping is in excess of Rs. 500 million. This prestigious project has been funded through the combined efforts of Plan International across many countries and continents, with major donors including The Victoria Government (Australia), The Grand Charity (UK), Disasters Emergency Committee (UK), and other private and corporate donors from Australia, The Netherlands, France, Finland, Sweden, Germany and Norway. This school is a partnership between Plan and the Government of Sri Lanka through the Ministry of Education. The facilities were designed by D&W Associates Ltd; the Project Managers were LAN Management Services and the school complex was built by the State Engineering Corporation.

This is one of the largest post-tsunami infrastructure projects in the area and aims to offer a quality of education that was previously out of reach for children from these communities. Today, approximately 1,300 students attend the school and by the start of 2009 it will reach its peak enrolment capacity of approximately 3,000, when Ruhunu Vijayabha Maha Vidyalaya will be a full-fledged institution of quality education with all classes from Grade 1 to 13. No doubt, the new school is bound to produce thousands of positively thinking citizens with the capacity for constructive participation and lead this beautiful island to prosperity in the future.

The new Ruhunu Vijayabha School Complex was opened on February 5, 2008 by His Excellency the President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The handing over of the Ruhunu Vijayabha school complex to the Government of Sri Lanka is a jubilant moment for the Plan family as this is the biggest project ever in Plan’s history of 70 years.