Sri Lanka is currently experiencing its worst ever economic crisis since the country’s independence in 1948. Across the country, people are feeling the growing pain of this worst economic crisis in years, which has driven up prices of essentials and triggered shortages of essential goods such as food items, medicine, fuel, cooking gas, milk etc. The current political turmoil and economic crisis have many faces and it has affected all social groups irrespective of financial stability and purchasing power.
As a result of the economic crisis, a political crisis is also looming in the form of civil unrest in Sri Lanka, and the general public is involved in protests taking place all over the country complaining of acute shortages of essential commodities and supplies. Queues for diesel, petrol, cooking gas and kerosene are a common sight, with people reporting having to wait in line for days on end to get their rations. Three people were reported to have died while waiting in the scorching heat.
The humanitarian impacts of the current crisis are;
• Food insecurity
• Reduced access to health care due to acute shortages of life-saving medicines and Critical surgeries in some state-run free hospitals have also been stalled due to power cuts and lack of fuel to run generators
• Civil unrest & violence
• Loss of livelihoods
• Mental health and Psycho-social issues
Prices of medicines have also skyrocketed, while the value of the Sri Lankan rupee has plummeted by 30 percent against the United States Dollar this year, making it the worst-performing currency in the world.
Sri Lanka Red Cross Society (SLRCS) being the largest and the leading humanitarian assistance provider in the county, is aiming at supporting the most vulnerable and underprivileged communities through;
1. cash-based interventions or distributing dry rations to acquire basic needs,
2. supporting the health authorities with essential lifesaving medicines and
3. providing medical assistance through medical camps for people who cannot afford the medicines from the private sector.