LOLC Divi Saviya reaches 100 days of humanitarian efforts

High inflation, rising commodity prices, power shortages and a fuel crisis has had a crippling effect on the livelihoods of all Sri Lankans. As published by UNICEF, seven out of ten families in Sri Lanka are cutting down their food intake, reducing portion sizes, and eating cheaper but less nutritious food, causing a desperate need for nutrition assistance in the country.

100 days of ago, LOLC Holdings was one of the first corporates to understand the need of initiating urgent measures to address the food crisis. Sustaining the efforts over a period of months, LOLC Divi Saviya distributed their unwavering constant support to the local communities for the 100th subsequent date on the 14th of September 2022, with their distributions made within the Galle district.

At a time that inflation hit a record high of 54.6 per cent while food inflation rose to 81 per cent, discussions were mounting on the spike in hunger and malnutrition within the country. United Nations reported that 6.7 million people in Sri Lanka are experiencing food insecurity. Whereas staple foods were unaffordable, Sri Lanka became the country with the highest rate of child malnutrition in South Asia. Particularly, children and pregnant women were forecasted to face a long-term impact of mal-nourishment.

In response to the human-need, LOLC launched ‘Divi Saviya’ an island-wide humanitarian relief programme in partnership with one of Sri Lanka’s premier broadcasting stations, to uplift the lives and livelihoods of the most vulnerable communities. Divi Saviya programme was curated specifically to assist the locals with emergency food supplies.