FCCISL provides Rs. 25 m under 'Back to business' program
by Shirajiv Sirimane
The Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCISL) under
their program 'back to business', has provided Rs. 25 million as seed
capital for micro level tsunami affected businessmen in the South and in
the Ampara district.
The FCCISL last Tuesday distributed Rs. 7.5 million at the Galle
Chamber of Commerce. A further sum of Rs. 2.5 million was distributed
among affected businessmen in both Matara and Hambantota Districts.
"These loans were awarded to traders by way of grants," said the
President of the FCCISL, Nawaz Rajabdeen. He said that while the
Government was involved in the infrastructure building after the tsunami
it was up to the Chambers and Non governmental organisations to get the
affected businessmen back to business.
"We are the only Chamber financially helping the rural poor, by
granting seed capital via grants to restart their businesses without
depending on government grants or financial assistance from the banks,"
he said.
He said that a further Rs. 15 million would be distributed in the
Ampara, Batticaloa and Trincomalee districts for small traders to get
back to business.
The donor community and non-governmental organisations have endorsed
this program and have made pledges for around Rs. 200 million. He said
that the FCCISL is not only addressing the tsunami affected businessmen.
"We are also launching vocational training centers, in Batticaloa and
other areas to train young people to start their own businesses," he
said.
"We are addressing the war affected areas too, trying to help the
people who are displaced in the past 20 years by setting up training
centers and business schools.
FCCISL has already started a business school in East and has provided
an outright grant of Rs. one million for the project.
The FCCISL soon after the tsunami set up information and help desks
to gather information of the affected Micro and small time businessmen
through the assistance of Small and Medium Enterprise Development (SMED)
which helped them to provide grants to the businessmen. |