Top US official in Lanka

A top US State Department official is in the country to discuss the needs of the IDPs and is expected to visit the war torn north, the US Embassy in Colombo said today.

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) of the U.S. Department of State, Kelly Clements is in the country to highlight the U.S. Government’s continued support for IDPs and returnees and is expected to visit Jaffna, Killinochchi and Mullaitivu to discuss the returnees' needs and their hopes for a better future.

The U.S. Government will contribute an additional $2.25 million to support internally displaced persons (IDPs) as they return to their homes and villages in northern Sri Lanka, the US Embassy said in a statement.

The money will enable approximately 9,000 families to receive the shelter cash grant provided to returning families by the Sri Lankan office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the statment added. (Daily Mirror online)