U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives Atul Keshap, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Sri Lanka Mission Director Reed Aeschliman, and Dr. Michael Ernst from USAID’s Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) met with Minister of Irrigation and Water Resources Management and Disaster Management Duminda Dissanayake to discuss Sri Lanka’s preparedness ahead of the monsoon season.
Topics also included past and ongoing U.S. financial and technical assistance for disaster preparedness, management, and recovery. USAID has provided assistance during natural crises to Sri Lanka since 2001 through OFDA. To date, USAID/OFDA has provided more than 13 billion Sri Lankan rupees ($85 million) in response to natural disasters in the country.
During his visit, Dr. Ernst met with government agencies, such as the National Building Research Organization and the Meteorological Department, and United Nations humanitarian response experts to discuss improvements to disaster management systems and information sharing, including early detection and warning of deadly landslides.
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