Reflections Newsletter Vol. 3/ Issue 1 (Jan - Mar)

CONTENTS

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Editorial Message Cover Story Staff Testimonies Highlights Special Feature

EDITORIAL Editors: Matthew Whitty

MESSAGE

Kindness Goes A Long Way Have you ever heard the expression ‘’a little bit of kindness goes a long way’’? This is not just merely a statement, it’s true. Science has proven that if you do something good to someone or if somebody else does something good to you, your body releases feel-good hormones such as Serotonin and Oxytocin. These are neurotransmitters that make you feel satisfied, happy, and loved. Therefore, by helping someone you are making yourself and someone else happy.

At times, we tend to be kind only towards the people we know, but it’s also important to be kind towards the people that we don’t know and practice random acts of kindness very often.

Kindness has a ripple effect. The more you practice it, the more you inspire others to do the same. It also defines who you are, it reflects your character and what type of a person you are. It’s crucial to be kind and compassionate to each other especially during these unprecedented times.

This is what ADRA does, and this is the message that ADRA conveys. As the humanitarian arm of the Seventh-day Adventist church, ADRA serves vulnerable people across 118 countries around the world. Through the work we do, we inspire people to practice kindness and compassion.

Assistant Editor/Layout: Shenal Hettiarachchi Contributors: Devashri Peiris Shenal Hettiarachchi Lakmini Jayathilake

Shenal Hettiarachchi

PR & Communications Officer ADRA Sri Lanka

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COVER STORY

Towards a Nation Free from Period Poverty

A recent study conducted by ADRA Sri Lanka and Oxfam Sri Lanka’s, European Union funded ACCEND project reveals that 50% of households in Sri Lanka with women and girls of menstrual age do not spend money on sanitary and menstrual hygiene products.

According to the study, sanitary products in Sri Lanka were taxed as high as 52%, making menstrual hygiene products inaccessible to a vast majority of women and girls in the country, especially in low income households of the estate and rural sectors.

The study titled ‘Taxing Menstrual Hygiene Products: A policy analysis’ was launched earlier this year to shed more light on the pressing issue. The study was conducted by the Advocata Institute on behalf of the Assisting Communities in Creating Environmental and Nutritional Development (ACCEND) project.

The launch event

Following the key-note speech, Jenny Correia Nunes, Head of Cooperation for the Delegation of the European Union to Sri Lanka and the Maldives, joined the launch virtually, making a statement on how “it is never too late to address the issues at stake.” She acknowledged that the study was the first of its kind in Sri Lanka to focus specifically on the cost of pads and sanitary products and the impact it has on girls and women, and that it was therefore an important subject area for women and girls, as well as society in whole.

The ACCEND project works towards improving the health and well-being of women and girls in estate and rural communities of the country. The project focuses on improving and raising awareness regarding menstrual hygiene in these communities. The project addressed period poverty through multiple approaches including; Dr. Harini Amarasuriya delivering the key-note speech. education and awareness on sexual reproductive health The launch event saw the participation of multiple stake- and menstrual hygiene amongst school children and holders including Parliament Minister, Hon. Dr. Harini communities, construction of pad disposal units, and deAmarasuriya who highlighted the importance of mitigat- velopment and dissemination of various IEC material. ing period poverty and improving women’s health and well-being. During her key-note address she stated ‘’this The study is now available through [period poverty] is a problem that needs to be addressed https://tinyurl.com/tmhpsl holistically. It is crucial to ensure that budget allocations are made in order to continuously fund work that benefits women’s health and well-being.’’

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STAFF TESTIMONIES

Devashri Peiris

Programs Officer

I started working at ADRA as the Administrative Assistant in 2019 soon after I came back to Sri Lanka from my previous job in Bahrain. Since then, I’ve grown and evolved with ADRA and have gained numerous experiences and knowledge.

My time at ADRA has been the best time of my personal life and my career so far.

It supported me to grow as a person and be the better version of myself. Additio-nally ADRA is a place that offers a lot of opportunities and encourages anyone to face challenges courageously. ADRA’s work environment is just amazing – everyone is treated equally. The team is always friendly, warm, and fun to be around.

Working for ADRA supported my desire to serve people, understand them better and overall gave me an opportunity to showcase God’s love and compassion. Whatever my future holds, I’ll always be thankful for the opportunity to work at ADRA – for the knowledge gained, experiences garnered, and connections made.

NEWS & HIGHLIGHTS Raising Awareness Regarding Government Services

The third phase of our LESS project recently conducted a series of programs to raise awareness regarding the services offered by local government institutions among the refugee returnee communities of the Manthai West and Nanattan Divisional Secretariats of the Mannar district.

Distribution of Hygiene Packs among Blind Communities Upon the request of the Sri Lanka Welfare of the Blind, ADRA through the BRAVE project distributed 800 hygiene and sanitary kits among blind families of Seeduwa, Raddoluwa, Kotugoda and Kimbulapitiya. Furthermore, health messages and messages regarding vaccination were disseminated among the community through braile system.

Supporting the COVID-19 wards of the Gampaha Hospital The Gampaha General Hospital is one of the major healthcare institutions in the Gampaha District that has 3 wards dedicated especially for COVID-19 patients. The hospital has a special Intensive Care Unit (ICU) dedicated just for COVID-19 which has a bed capacity of 8 at the moment. The existing beds in the unit were manual beds. Therefore, ADRA’s BRAVE project donated 3 fully functional electric beds to the ICU recently.

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SPECIAL FEATURE

The Unresolved Epidemic of CKDu Chronic Kidney Disease of Unknown Origin (CKDu) is a disease highly prevalent in the rural communities of Sri Lanka. In 2004, the total number CKDu patients reported was 7,763 and in 2010 the number of patients rapidly rose up to 21,219. As of 2017, the reported number of patients was 47,891. Due to the rapid progress of the numbers, the social and personal burden coupled with the disease further exacerbates lives of those affected and their families.

According to the study, majority of the victims were diagnosed at a very young age. A male predominance was also noted among the patients and most of them were breadwinners of their respective families. The study also reveals that even though the required health facilities have been established, the patients face numerous difficulties in obtaining these services. Furthermore, it discloses that numerous economic hardships are being generated due to the condition and that maintaining optimum psychological well-being among the patients is a challenge. It’s also evident that patients do not possess adequate and accurate knowledge regarding the disease condition which needs to be addressed directly and in a well-organized manner.

ADRA Sri Lanka and Oxfam Sri Lanka through their European Union funded Assisting Communities in Creating Environmental and Nutritional Development (ACCEND) project facilitated a research study to identify the socio-economic impact created by the disease and to lobby relevant authorities and policymakers to take neces- Upon identifying the existing gaps through the findings sary measures to better support those affected. of the research report, the project presented several policy recommendations and created space for further disThe study was carried out with the support of APK Re- cussion on the matter by organizing a symposium. Varisearchers headed by Dr. Pasan Jayasinghe (Regional Epi- ous officials representing the health sector were present demiologist of Kandy) in the Wilgamuwa Divisional Sec- at the symposium including the Governor of the Central retariat Division of the Matale district. Out of the 1,161 Province, Hon. Lalith U. Gamage. registered patients diagnosed with CKDu for more than one year in the division, 262 patients were sampled for Download the study via the study. Thereafter, the collected data were analyzed https://tinyurl.com/ckduresearch by utilizing appropriate statistical parameters – using both descriptive and comparative calculations.

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