The Specialized Training and Disability Resource Centre of the Employers’ Federation of Ceylon is pleased to inform you that we are undertaking assignments with regard to the preparation of communication materials such as Leaflets, Brochures, Flyers, Notices etc. in Braille, Large print, audio, accessible e-copies, and sign-language in all three languages at a nominal fee.
Access to public information is a basic human right. For corporates, by making such information and communication about your products and services available for your customers or employees with diverse disabilities in #accessible formats will be an impactful exercise.
Manique Gunaratne prepared A leaflet on “Sexual and Reproductive Health” published by the Family Planning Association in accessible formats to be distributed among persons with disabilities in all corners of Sri Lanka in March 2023.
Braille ReadingBraille ReadingBraille printingHanding over the Braille materials
MANIQUE GUNARATNE Vice Chairperson – South Asian Disability Forum
The welfare benefits assessment led by the Welfare Benefits Board, is supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the World Bank (WB). The Welfare Benefit Board has introduced a system to identify those in financial need amidst the current economic and political crisis. Accordingly, a QR code system has been developed for those that should register as beneficiaries of the welfare subsidy. All those registered will be assessed based on a set of 22 indicators – using a Computer-Assisted Personal Interviews (CAPI) mode (digitized survey). This survey has been translated into local languages and digitized on Kobotoolbox platform using a customised application called Aswesuma.
The Centre for Poverty Analysis (CEPA) provided technical support to improve the survey tool, develop the training material and module and deliver the training required to administer the CAPI survey.
30 master trainers, who will act in the capacity of Trainer of Trainers (TOT) were trained on the questionnaire/survey by the Department of Census and Statistics (DCS) and on CAPI by the Welfare Benefits Board and CEPA.
Manique Gunaratne was one of the Master Trainers to support an inclusive approach to include persons with disabilities into the scheme. The master trainer pool then trained 330 Statistical Officers (SOs) and 660 Development Officers (DOs), who then trained 14,000 enumerators at each GN division. The role of the master trainers was to ensure that the survey purpose, indicator definitions and navigation and use of the CAPI /Aswesuma platform are transferred to the DCS officers – in both Sinhala and Tamil. These DCS officers acted in the capacity of trouble-shooters and first line of defence for the 14,000 enumerators. The training sessions were held at the BMICH, at the Department of Census & Statistics and at the CEPA office from October to December 2022.
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Participants
Attending the SessionAttending the Session
MANIQUE GUNARATNE Committee Member – SPRINT Committee of Family Planning Association
The University of Colombo conducted a series of trainings on Disability Awareness and Sensitization under the Faculty of Arts – AHEAD grant and implemented in collaboration with Centre for Disability Research Education and Practice (CEDREP) and the Staff Development Centre (SDC), University of Colombo for the non-academic staff in March 2022.
Ms. Manique Gunaratne conducted the sessions on how to provide:
Diversity of disability – varied lived realities of persons with disabilities.
The role of inclusive technology and assistive devices.
Inclusive language and terminology.
Building a respectful and inclusive university community by interaction, assistance, disability accommodation and socialization.
Travel involves; before the trip: planning, during the trip: enjoyment and formation of new memories and after the trip: utilization of obtained resources.
Therefore, with all these arguments, there is no option but to conclude that travel improves self-esteem and social skills in addition to having a clear and direct health benefit. Travel is the key that opens the door to what all human beings crave: happiness.
Manique Gunaratne created the opportunity for a group of persons with disabilities to visit the Yapahuwa Rock in January 2022.
Yapahuwa was one of the ephemeral capitals of medieval Sri Lanka The citadel of Yapahuwa lying midway between Kurunagala and Anuradhapura was built around a huge granite rock rising abruptly almost a hundred meters above the surrounding lowlands.
In 1272, King Bhuvenakabahu transferred the capital from Polonnaruwa to Yapahuwa in the face of Dravidian invasions from South India, bringing the Sacred Tooth Relic with him. Following the death of King Bhuvenakabahu in 1284, the Pandyans of South India invaded Sri Lanka once again, and succeeded in capturing the Sacred Tooth Relic. Following its capture, Yapahuwa was largely abandoned and inhabited by Buddhist monks and religious ascetics.
The rock fortress complex of Yapahuwa is situated in the North Western Province, Sri Lanka. It is approximately between southeast of Mahawa midway Kurunegala and Anuradhapura. The original name of this Buddhist Heritage is Yapawwa, but now this is called as Yapahuwa which is a kind of distortion of its genuine etymological sense.
Yapahuwa served as the capital of Sri Lanka in the latter part of the 13th century (1273–1284). Built on a huge, 90 meter high rock boulder in the style of the Sigiriya rock fortress, Yapahuwa was a palace and military stronghold against foreign invaders.
The palace and fortress were built by King Buvanekabahu I (1272–1284) in the year 1273. Many traces of ancient battle defenses can still be seen, while an ornamental stairway is its biggest showpiece. This staircase is a long one with around 100 steps. On top of the rock are the remains of a stupa, a Bodhi tree enclosure, and a rock shelter/cave used by Buddhist monks, indicating that earlier this site was used as a Buddhist monastery, like many boulders and hills in the area. There are several caves at the base of the rock. In one of them there is a shrine with Buddha images. One cave has a Brahmi script inscription. At the southern base of the rock there is a fortification with two moats and ramparts. In this enclosure there are the remains of a number of buildings including a Buddhist shrine. There is also a Buddhist temple called Yapahuwa Rajamaha Vihara built during the Kandyan period.
The Tooth Relic was brought from Dambadeniya and kept in the Tooth Temple built for the purpose at the top of the third staircase. The relics were carried away from the temple here to South India by the Pandyas, and then recovered in 1288 by Parakkramabahu III (1287–1293), who temporarily placed them in safety at Polonnaruwa.
Steps to the rockSteps to the rockGroup PhotographView of the surroundingsClimbing the stairsView of the surroundingsManique at the top of the rock
Manique sitting on the stairs
Manique at the top of the rockView of the surroundingsGroup Photograph
A disability accessibility audit and a advocacy group discussions were held with persons with disabilities belonging to Palagala Pradeshiya Sabha and staff members (persons with non-disabilities) of the Pradeshiya Sabha on how to have an inclusive approach when providing services which already exists at the Palagala Pradeshiya Sabha in Anuradhapura district in North Central Province in December 2021.
It is part of the European Union’s STRIDE (Strengthening Transformation, Reconciliation, and Inclusive Democratic Engagement) programme focused on strengthening the capacities of local government authorities to be inclusive, responsive, and accountable, and improve service delivery.
Together with the Capacity Development of Local Governments (CDLG) Project of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and The Employers’ Federation of Ceylon (EFC), implemented this project on Disability accessibility audit and enhancing the capacity of technical officers in the #local #government structure.
The EFC, with an overall vision statement to promote social harmony through productive employment, is implementing several proactive measures to encourage its members to hire people with disabilities.
The EFC is the representative employers’ Organisation in Sri Lanka on social issues. It has a membership of 700 plus member Companies. Formed in 1929, it was the first organization to register under the Trade Unions Ordinance and is the principal Trade Union representing employers. The EFC, with funding from the ILO, developed the Employers’ Network on Disability to facilitate employment and training opportunities in the Private Sector for disabled jobseekers, which was officially launched in the year 1999. It has a membership of 700 plus Companies.
The object of forming the Network is to link the business community and the organizations dealing with disability issues to facilitate mainstreaming its work.
The Capacity Development for Local Governments (CDLG) Project of UNDP Sri Lanka is part of larger efforts by the Government of Sri Lanka to strengthen the local governance system in the country. These efforts are supported by the European Union, and the World Bank.
Disability inclusion is one of the key strategic priorities for UNDP Sri Lanka in keeping with the commitment of UNDP globally and the new initiatives of disability inclusion strategy and their commitment to leave no one behind.
Palagala PS NameboardAdvocacy Group DiscussionChecking AccessibilityChecking AccessibilityChecking AccessibilityChecking AccessibilityChecking AccessibilityAdvocacy Group DiscussionChecking AccessibilityChecking AccessibilityChecking AccessibilityAdvocacy Group DiscussionManique in the GardenAdvocacy Group DiscussionPalagala PS
It is a matter of “pulling out all the stops”, as much as possible, so that people with #disabilities can achieve their own goals, reach their own conclusions and get to places that would otherwise be difficult for them to reach.
In short, the goal is to use all the different tools we can find (especially our human resources) to train the brains of people with disabilities in order to overcome any obstacles we encounter along the way. Travel helps persons with disabilities to achieve their goals.
Manique Gunaratne gave the opportunity to a group of persons with Diverse disabilities to visit the Iranamadu Tank in Kilinochchi in April 2022.
Iranamadu Tank is located in Northern Province, Sri Lanka. Iranamadu tank is one of the man-made largest #reservoirs of Sri Lanka. Iranamadu village and the tank belong to Killinochi District. Iranamadu tank has been a traditional #fishing ground for generations. It is located 8km from the city of Kilinochi. Water reservoir capacity is 131.4mcm. Sri Lanka is a popular #tourist country, Iranamadu tank is a place to be visited on your way to Jaffna peninsula. Killinochi district people are facilitated with irrigation services, fishing industry and sanitation services. This is one of the deepest tanks in Sri Lanka.
King Dhatusena built the Iranamadu tank another. In 1920 the tank was repaired and reconstructed. People in Killinochi mostly do farming so they are very useful with the Iranamadu tank. Iranamadu Irrigation Development Project is a basic part of the arrangement to Jaffna for the passing of water on the one hand and the treatment of the downstream canal system as ordered by the target group population on the other. The choice of the project area is determined by the nature of the Project and it includes the Iranamadu irrigation scheme. The tank is now allowed for fishing and a project is proposed to extract drinking water from the tank.
Team MembersView of the TankAt the TankAt the EntranceTeam Members
The Family Planning Association of Sri Lanka is the implementing partner of the project called Sexual and Reproductive Health Programme IN humaniTarian settings (SPRINT). SPRINT was designed to address gaps in the implementation of the Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP) for #Reproductive Health, which is a set of priority activities to be implemented at the onset of an emergency. As one of the most vulnerable groups affected in emergencies, SPRINT prioritizes persons with #disabilities in decision making and providing access to community-specific, life-saving SRH needs. Therefore, under SPRINT IV, FPASL organized a training on MISP targeting persons with disabilities.
Manique Gunaratne together with the trainees of The Employers’ Federation of Ceylon, Specialised Training & Disability Resource Centre contributed in this endeavor. In order to make this training programme a success, all persons with diverse disabilities which included vision impaired persons, #hearing impaired persons, persons with physical disabilities and parents of persons with intellectual disabilities were selected.
The objective of the training was to sensitize persons with disabilities on the implementation of the Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP) for Sexual and Reproductive Health in Emergencies. The nominated participants were able to share the learned information with their larger community. They are also active participants representing the persons with disabilities in decision making and implementing services specific to fulfilling SRH needs of their respective communities.
The training was held at Granbell Hotel, in March 2023. All training materials were prepared in accessible formats such as Braille, large print, audio (DAISY), accessible formats and in sign language by The Employers’ Federation of Ceylon, Specialised Training & Disability Resource Centre.
Group PhotographSign language InterpretationResource person conducting the sessionResource person conducting the sessionAt the SessionParticipantsParticipantsParticipantsParticipantsParticipantsSign language InterpretationGroup Photograph
MANIQUE GUNARATNE The Employers’ Federation of Ceylon, 385 J3 Old Kotte Road, Rajagiriya, Sri Lanka.
The team led by Ms. Manique Gunaratne of The Employers’ Federation of Ceylon, Specialised Training & Disability Resource Centre did a Disability #Accessibility #Audit to give recommendations to the Vavuniya South Tamil Pradeshiya Sabha in Vavuniya district in Northern Province of Sri Lanka in March 2022. The advocacy group discussions were held with persons with disabilities belonging to Vavuniya South Tamil Pradeshiya Sabha and staff members (persons with non-disabilities) of the Pradeshiya Sabha on how to have an inclusive approach when providing services which already exists.
It is part of the European Union’s STRIDE (Strengthening Transformation, Reconciliation, and Inclusive Democratic Engagement) programme focused on strengthening the capacities of local government authorities to be inclusive, responsive, and accountable, and improve service delivery.
Together with the Capacity Development of Local Governments (CDLG) Project of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and The Employers’ Federation of Ceylon (EFC), implemented this project on Disability accessibility audit and enhancing the capacity of technical officers in the #local #government structure.
The EFC, with an overall vision statement to promote social harmony through productive employment, is implementing several proactive measures to encourage its members to hire people with #disabilities.
The EFC is the representative employers’ Organisation in Sri Lanka on social issues. It has a membership of 700 plus member Companies. Formed in 1929, it was the first Organisation to register under the Trade Unions Ordinance and is the principal Trade Union representing employers. The EFC, with funding from the ILO, developed the Employers’ Network on Disability to facilitate employment and training opportunities in the Private Sector for disabled jobseekers, which was officially launched in the year 1999. It has a membership of 700 plus Companies.
The object of forming the Network is to link the business community and the organizations dealing with disability issues to facilitate mainstreaming its work.
The Capacity Development for Local Governments (CDLG) Project of UNDP Sri Lanka is part of larger efforts by the Government of Sri Lanka to strengthen the local governance system in the country.
These efforts are supported by the European Union, and the World Bank.
Team MembersChecking AccessibilityAdvocacy DiscussionChecking AccessibilityChecking AccessibilityAdvocacy DiscussionChecking AccessibilityChecking AccessibilityAdvocacy DiscussionChecking AccessibilityManique in front of the PSChecking AccessibilityAdvocacy DiscussionChecking AccessibilityAdvocacy DiscussionAdvocacy DiscussionHanding over Braille Calendar
MANIQUE GUNARATNE Board Member Navajeevana Rehabilitation
Traveling involves broadening the horizons of the personal universe, thereby increasing the ability to connect abstract concepts, such as experiences or situations that, when applied to everyday life, provide the solutions to many of the problems encounter every day. Therefore, creating the “Self-managed Trips” programmes in which persons with disabilities are actively involved in the entire organisation and decision-making process required to plan a trip, regardless of its duration, be it a month or only two days.
#Manique Gunaratne created the opportunity for a group of persons with diverse #disabilities to visit the Hatthikuchchi Vihara in Anuradhapura district in November 2021.
#Hatthikucchi Viharaya is a ruined ancient temple complex situated on the northern border of the North Western Province (Wayamba), in Sri Lanka.
The name ‘Hatthikucchi’ is a pali word meaning ‘Elephant Stomach’ This names has been given because of a large rock inside the temple complex which resembles an elephant.
There are more than fifty rock inscriptions have been identified on the vihara rock and its base, dating from 2nd to 9th centuries AD. Among them several inscriptions, called Vaharala, mention the freeing of slaves from compulsory service.
The Temple complex is considered to have been built by King Devanampiyatissa (307–267 BC) and one of the oldest Buddhist temple complexes in the country. Later for various reasons this complex was forgotten and by the time of king Sirisangabo this was covered with jungle.
It has been taken into consideration that this was the location where King Sirisangabo (251–253 AD) offered his own head to a peasant. Previously it was widely considered that this incident took place at Attanagalla in Gampaha district now most scholars have raised the argument that this must be the place that it really took place.
Main reason for this idea was that, in the story it says the peasant walked half a day from Anuradhapura towards the south where he met the former king Sirisangabo. Since Hatthikucchi Viharaya is only 38.5 km from Anuradhapura rather than Attanagalla which is 170 km from Anuradhapura there is a better chance this is the actual place the incident took place.
Supporting this facts there is a tomb which is considered to have the ashes of the king Sirisangabo. In this tomb the tombstone which is built from bricks resembling a human body have a granite sphere as the head piece since it was missing in the dead body.
Excavations are still under way at the site and more ruins are yet to be found which are covered with the jungle.
Way to the Entrance
Stupa
Description of the TempleGroup PhotographSurrounding EnvironmentRuins around the StupaTop of the RockRuinsEntrance to the StupaDescriptionStupaSurrounding EnvironmentEnvironmentView from the top of the RockEnvironment
