Visit at the CCF Office

After an excellent meal taken at the restaurant of the hotel, Srath finally takes us in car. I phoned to Dinesha from the hotel and the meeting is planned at about 2.00 pm. After hesitating in the streets of Colombo, Srath calls Dinesha to get more precisions on the route. In fact we were quite near the office, and we get there in a few minutes. We are welcomed by Dinesha Senevirathne who is the person in charge of the sponsorships for the CCF in Sri Lanka, partner of “Un enfant par la main”, she’s the one I exchanged e-mails with so far, and by Dinantha Thambavita who is in charge of the programmes. They are between 25 and 30. The offices are rather deserted, we are in the middle of the weekend. We thank them for being there, so kind.

I take the opportunity to give to Dinesha the presents bought for them. No doubt they’ll appreciate the Briton cake and flag. Thanks to a map of Sri lanka, Dinantha presents us the different projects in progress. We notice that the North-Est area is part of them and a programme is developed in Triconmalee. These areas are declared potentially dangerous by the “Quai d’Orsay” and they are to be avoided. The CCF doesn’t have the same views but they agree that one district is completely out of control of the government and remains inaccessible.

It’s the heart of the Tamil area in the hands of the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam). We wondered about the situation in Sri Lanka before coming. We even thought of cancelling or forecasting our journey after the attacks which took place in Colombo in January. I questioned the “Quai d’Orsay” and the French embassy in Colombo by mail, giving details on our project. I didn’t get any answer. On the other hand Dinesha had told me there was no particular danger and tourists were still coming to Sri Lanka.

Before carrying on, we are given a royal coconut as a refreshing drink. It looks like a coconut but the shell is smooth and orangey. The coconut milk is very refreshing with very little sugar and we appreciate it a lot because even with the air conditioning, it’s still very warm in the office. Outside it must be about 30°C. Dinantha also gives us some precisions on the management of  the 2000 mails received per month.. They are translated by subcontracting with makes the time to arrive longer. As “Un enfant par la main” is affiliated to the international network Childfund Alliance, the funds are transmitted to the different foreign banks of the countries which the association gives a support to and are afterwards sent to the different development programmes where the sponsored children live. Each project therefore manages its budget. I question Dinantha on the average duration of a project. He answers me that in average a project lasts about 15 years and permits the sponsored child but also his/her community and this thanks to the sponsorship, medical supervision, nutritional help, education, access to drinking water and development of activities generating money. Some of them make commercial and industrial development possible. The project stops when the people concerned are autonomous. I ask Dinantha and Dinesha if sponsors frequently come and visit. They say Europeans come frequently but Americans rarely. There are sometimes whole groups like these hundred Koreans who came with equipment, logistics and doctors to visit several projects. Dinantha remembers a group of 55 sponsors whose visit in Hambantota they had to organize. Dinesha reminds us that the visit of a sponsor is a celebration not only for the family but also for the neighbourhood. We understand what the Sri-Lankan hospitality means. That’s what we’ll see two days later.

We leave the members of the CCF in Colombo after taking a few photos. While going back to the hotel, Srath drives the wrong way. Calmly and under a concert of horns, we go back the right way. I take the opportunity to take a few photos through the open window.