NZ Freephone Small scale farmers in Sri Lanka are finding local solutions to hunger, rising costs and community challenges like wild elephants.
Dayaseeli at work on her land.
We are a Changed People
The world is continuing to heat up with devastating consequences, but for many of the poorest people it is the latest in a series of calamities that have undermined and sometimes destroyed homes and livelihoods. The Movement for Land and Agricultural Reform (MONLAR) brings together networks of farmers and rural people in Sri Lanka to learn eco-agricultural techniques and campaign for community concerns, with support from Christian World Service supporters like you. One of the big challenges facing Sri Lankan farmers is human-elephant conflict. In 2023, 449 elephants were killed and 169 people lost their lives, up from 433 and 145 respectively the year before.
Hambantota in southern Sri Lanka is one area where MONLAR works with small-scale farmers. Until recently Hambantota was a sleepy seaside town surrounded by over 118,000 hectares of forests populated by elephants and other wildlife. Since 2001 a quarter of that land has been swallowed up for infrastructure projects such as a major seaport and large scale commercial agricultural projects.
A map of Sri Lanka showing Hambantota District. (credit Uwe Dedering CCBY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons)
The government had planned to allocate land for a Managed Elephant Reserve but by the time it was gazetted in 2021, the area that was meant to provide for 300- 400 elephants (ten percent of the country’s elephant population) had been more than halved. The loss of habitat has forced the elephants to come closer to humans in search of food and water.
There are 300-400 wild elephants living in the Hambantota District.
Dayaseeli who lost her husband in the 1980s works tirelessly to create a sustainable future for elephants and people. She has raised two children, runs a small, successful agro-business and is an auditor for community organisations and farmer associations. In her quiet way she has shared her expertise with other women farmers who have been left alone to raise their children. She has also been an active member of MONLAR’s campaign to protect the elephants, their habitat and the community.
Dayaseeli prepares vegetables to sell at the market.
Dayaseeli has been at the forefront of community efforts to protect the elephants and improve the livelihoods of other small-scale farmers in the Hambantota district. The 65-year-old lives in a small home and grows crops on her two acres of land.
Small-scale farmers used to grow enough food for their needs on small plots of land. One or two elephants would sometimes arrive in a village but as soon as they saw people, they would retreat to the nearby forest. Since 2012, when land began being rapidly cleared for development, the elephants have been unable to feed themselves in the shrinking forests. Now a few marauding elephants can destroy months of hard work by small-scale farmers in one night.
Dayaseeli audits the accounts for community organisations and shares her business expertise with other small farmers.
More hungry elephants have put more pressure on rural communities.
“There is fear and panic. Parents are afraid to send their children to school. People are afraid to take their produce to the market on motorcycles. The fear has crippled the social and economic life of the village. This is the plight of many villages in Hambantota district,” she says.
Over the years officials from the department of Wildlife Conservation and Forests have tested various solutions to the human-elephant conflict. MONLAR has also been researching solutions.
Small-scale farmers install fences to guide the elephants to local water sources.
“Ultimately what works best is fencing. However, the government has made partial constructions and businessmen who clear forests for various ‘development’ activities too have built fences. This overlapping and unsystematic fencing made matters worse. In response we came up with a proposal to establish a 10-kilometre elephant fence using a design of our own. The design was approved by wildlife officials,” she says.
“Once we build the fence over 5,800 farming families in the area will be able to carry out their agricultural activities without fear. Thousands of children will be able to go to school in the morning. The lives of dozens of elephants and humans will be saved each year. If we succeed here, this will provide a blueprint that can be followed by other struggling farming communities. We just want a country where humans and elephants can live in harmony,” she concludes.
Late last year small-scale farmers raised enough funds to build the first five kilometres of the electric fence.
“MONLAR over the years has helped us with sustainable agriculture and promoted the rights of peasants…. We are a changed people,” Dayaseeli says.
United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 15
Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.
Find out more.
Small-scale farmers are installing electric fences in an effort to protect their crops and homes from wild elephants.
Give Life: Support Small-scale Farmers who are losing Livelihoods to the Climate Crisis
Help small-scale farmers on the brink of disaster to plant climate-resilient crops, feed their families and deal with big challenges like elephants and the lack of water.
Make a donation to the Small-scale Farmers Appeal
Read as a PDF.
Share Hope Today
The training and support from MONLAR has planted seeds of hope for many small-scale farmers in Sri Lanka. With new skills and knowledge plus seeds and other materials, small-scale farmers like Dayaseeli have improved their lives and livelihoods. The race is on to build climate resilience in local communities and ensure families have good food to eat, especially in rural communities.
A gift of:
- $60 could help small-scale farmers plant more climate-resilient crops.
- $128 could improve irrigation and soil protection for small-scale farmers.
- $300 could fund local solutions to community challenges – like managing wild elephants.
