Japan extends support for Humanitarian Demining Activities in the Northern Province

On 29th September 2026, His Excellency Akio ISOMATA, Ambassador of Japan to Sri Lanka, signed a grant contract for a demining project under the scheme of “Grant Assistance for Grassroots Projects (GGP)”, with Mr. Sarath Jayawardhana, Programme Manager of Skavita Humanitarian Assistance and Relief Project (SHARP).

The Government of Japan has provided USD 447,432 (approx. Rs. 148　million) for its project, which will be implemented by SHARP, to support their humanitarian demining activities in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka.  Under this new project, more than 190,000 m² of land is expected to be made mine-free, allowing more than 7,000 people to return to their land and approx. 11,500 people in the surrounding areas to expand their economic activities.  Japan has been a major donor for demining activities in Sri Lanka since 2002, and its total assistance amounts to over USD 50 million.

Expressing his deepest gratitude to SHARP for its untiring efforts in the demining activities, Ambassador ISOMATA said: “As a steadfast partner in Sri Lanka's post-conflict recovery and reconciliation efforts, Japan has extended more than 50 million USD for various demining projects in Sri Lanka over nearly a quarter-century since 2002, that is, since even before the end of the civil war. Today's signing is another testament to Japan’s commitment to continued assistance to the people of Sri Lanka, especially to those in the conflict-affected areas.” Ambassador ISOMATA, referring to his most recent visit to the Northern Province where he met people from  various communities with different backgrounds, further stated: “I would also like to call upon all the stakeholders, including the Government of Sri Lanka, to reach out further beyond the existing donors and broaden its circle of support, by engaging civil society, the private sector and the diaspora, to accelerate demining activities as well as other initiatives, for the development of the Northern and Eastern Provinces at a greater scale. Needless to say, for sustainable development of the entire nation, we need to strengthen a holistic approach to bridge the regional gaps in economic development in the country.”
 

Commenting on the receipt of this grant assistance Mr. Sarath Jayawardhana,  Programme Manager of SHARP, stated, “SHARP is very grateful and deeply indebted to the Japanese Embassy in Sri Lanka for having provided the initial funds through GGP Japan in 2016 for SHARP to commence demining operations, and appreciate very much Japan having been the sole funder of SHARP from 2016 to 2021, and thereafter continuing to be the major donor of SHARP from 2022 onwards.”