“If there is will, there is always a way" North East Central Tripartite Association for Reconstruction (NECTAR)

Mission Statement!
“It is the inalienable right of every human being to endeavour, and to fulfil his or her natural potentials. It is also the birthright of everyone to establish an environment within which all human beings can have their natural meaning, prosper and achieve maximum benefits for their endeavours. NECTAR, as a non governmental organization, having identified itself with this process of collective empowerment, pledges itself to work effectively and with high efficiency to empower the peoples of North-East and Central provinces of Ceylon (Sri Lanka). NECTAR shall at all time act in consultation with , and with the complete participation of the communities it serves, and promises to engender programs that enhances the collective will, aspirations and in general the socio-economic capacity of the peoples of these provinces.”

North East Central Tripartite Association for Reconstruction (NECTAR), a non governmental organization (NGO) was established in the U.K. in 2005 by individuals, who have been consistently active in social work to empower their brethren who live in the North-East, and Central provinces of Ceylon (Sri Lanka), immediately after the tsunami disaster struck the North-East Province and other locations in December 2004. The natural tragedy added urgency to the devastation years of civil war had rendered. Many expatriate communities answered the cry for help with immediate donations and assistance. However, the issues that led to the civil strife against the state still prevailed and the promised international relief efforts and funds earmarked especially for the North-East failed to materialise. It has become therefore the responsibility of the expatriate communities to mobilise resources, and seek avenues to rehabilitate and restore some form of normalcy in these provinces. NECTAR having committed itself to this effort, at the same time realises that rehabilitation should ideally be achieved within a collective theme that defines long term goals and objectives. These two elements have found their expressions in the NECTAR’s Mission Statement above and the Vision Statement below.

NECTAR’s mission to empower people as individuals and as communities finds a natural interpretation within its vision statement.’ Empowerment’ is the mantra it would enunciate through its words and deeds. It embodies the utmost respect for the human life. The same respect shall also be extended to the environment and the human habitats. In practice this means consultation with, and consensuses building within the communities it serve, within a broader framework of environmental harmony and sustainable living conditions.

Within a relatively short time, NECTAR has established itself as an active group engaged on projects to fit its mission and vision statements. One of its first tasks has been to set up NECTAR (Lanka) registered as an independent NGO in Sri Lanka, which is to function as NECTAR’s main project planning and implementation unit in Sri Lanka.

Vision Statement
“NECTAR’s aspiration is to oversee the development of a sense of purpose and direction, and a common theme in the socio-economic and cultural activities of the peoples in the North-East and Central provinces of Ceylon (Sri Lanka), and to gear these efforts towards the long term empowerment of the peoples envisioned. Its goals are to engineer the development and cycling of ideas, expertise and skills, knowledge and technology and, enhance capital and labour usage within these provinces.”

NECTAR in brief:
1) is an NGO working for empowerment of individuals and communities in the North-East and Central provinces of Ceylon ( Sri Lanka);
2) believes in utmost respect for human life, the habitat and the environment;
3) seeks to enhance the socio-economic capacity and cultural activities of these peoples as a long term goal;
4) aims specifically to develop knowledge, skills, and technology and upgrade capital and labour usage;                                                                                               5) believes in the unity of purpose and action, and these values underpin its current projects;
6) in essence, stands for Empowerment, Reconstruction, Organised & unified action, and Service.

Nectar (Lanka): Goals. Personnel and projects!
Nectar Lanka was incorporated in Sri Lanka as a non-profit organization with limited liability under the Companies Act No. 17 of 1982, with the registration
N (A) 1441. The primary goals are to render humanitarian relief, rehabilitation, engage in new construction and reconstruction, and in general to enhance the socio-economic capacity especially, of the deprived people located in the North East and Central areas of Ceylon. Nectar Lanka’s stated goals are to empower the poor, the displaced and the refugees regardless of their race, caste, gender, faith, disability or political conviction. These will be achieved through a series of development projects, of mixed scale and technologies, sustainable in the long term with high income and employment generation potential, notably in the education and social services, agriculture, and fisheries sectors.

Nectar Lanka’s Board of Directors consist of: Prof S.Ganesan,the Chair; V.Kuhanendran, Vice Chair; M.Baladasan, Vice Chair; C.Kaendran, T.Kirupakaran (Kirupa); R.Kanagaretnam (Ganesh); V.Jeyamurugan (Velu); R.S.Rajendra.

The organisation is serviced by a team of experienced Consultants: Prof. S. Pathmanathan, Dr.M.Pathinathan, and D.Peiris, H.Fernando, and Miss.Janaki Kuhanendran.

Nectar Lanka banks with HSBC, Colombo 1, and KRESTON MNS and Co., a leading accountancy firm in Sri Lanka, act as auditors.

The members of the Board and Consultants bring in a valuable combination of skills much needed for planning and executing development projects, from the disciplines of civil and structural engineering, urban and rural architecture, development planning, economics, accountancy and business management, To mention a few, Prof S. Ganesan, formerly of the University of Hong Kong, is a civil engineer, with specialised experience in development planning. T.Kirupakran, from Batticaloa, has gained valuable skills in farm management. R.Kanagaretnam, from Batticaloa, is the Chief Executive of SWEED, with considerable field experience in managing housing, settlement and fisheries projects.

In less than a year of activity, Nectar is active in several projects. The first effort was a micro- finance project inaugurated in 2005 in Trincomalee, with an initial outlay of 0.5 million SL Rs. The Project grants loans to small scale and self employed businesses. The Rs. 43 Million Cattle Farm Project in Unnichikulam (in Vavunatheevu District, 32 Km from Batticaloa Town , with over 500 animals , is an ambitious project to upgrade the genetic pool of the local cattle over a period of 10-15 years by selling upgraded animals, improve local milk yield significantly from 1.5 litres to over 5 litres per day, provide training for local farmers in all aspects of cattle breeding, farm management and marketing, and to develop secondary industries.

The Project has already received funding for Phase 1, of 130,000 UK sterling pounds (or 23 Million SL Rs), from The World Jewish Aid in London. Profits from the project anticipated after the 5th year of operations will be ploughed back into the local community’s infrastructure development. A Management Committee has been set up to oversee this project, and the project is being implemented with the assistance of the Eastern University, and the Department of Animal Production and Health in Batticaloa.

A large piece of land has already been purchased for the Information and Communication Technology Project in Trincomalee (Trico ICT project). The project is being conceived with flexible modules of training in computer and communication skills, to be imparted to local residents, to be coupled with income generating communication services for the local population, in order to subsidise the training component. Nectar Lanka is currently also seeking funding for project in Sainthamaruthu, in the Kalmunai district, with a view to improving the productivity of the local fisherman. This is planned to be executed in collaboration with SWEED (a local ngo) and the local fishermen’s cooperative. A small scale cattle project to achieve genetic upgrading of local cattle in the upcountry areas is also being studied.

Contact Information:
email: nectarsecretary@yahoo.co.uk