New Land-Cruiser to Wilpattu National Park

GIZ Sri Lanka and Maldives Country Director Christiane Einfeldt ceremoniously handed over the key of the new Toyota Land-Cruiser V8 to Department of Wildlife Conservation Deputy Director Ranjan Marasinghe and Additional Secretary Wernon Perera at GIZ Country Office premises. Also present are Director Deepal Siribaddana from the Ministry of Environment and Wildlife Resources, Chandani Wilson, Focal Point of the Department of Wildlife Conservation, and Cristina Georgii and Grace Aloo from GIZ

For enhancing park operations and environmental management activities in the Wilpattu National Park, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH has handed over a brand new Toyota Land-Cruiser V8 to the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC).

GIZ Sri Lanka and Maldives Country Director Christiane Einfeldt handed over the keys of the new vehicle to Department of Wildlife Conservation Deputy Director Ranjan Marasinghe at the GIZ Country Office on 11 August.

“Mobility is one of the major obstacles for implementing conservation, outreach and environmental education activities in the Wilpattu National Park and influence zones. This vehicle will be very useful for the implementation of Environmental and Outreach Program activities efficiently in the Wilpattu National Park,” stated Marasinghe.

The ‘Supporting Wilpattu and Influence Zone Management in Sri Lanka’ project is implemented by the Department of Wildlife Conservation of the Ministry of Environment and Wildlife Resources and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, on behalf of the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The project combines the conservation efforts within the Wilpattu National Park with the sustainable development of its influence zones.

The project aims to improve Wilpattu National Park’s management capacity with emphasis on the Park Operations, Environmental and Visitor Use Programmes, in technical and specialist terms, in support to the Wilpattu National Park Management Plan (2019-2024).

During the ceremony, Additional Secretary Wernon Perera and Director Deepal Siribaddana from the Ministry of Environment and Wildlife Resources expressed their support for ongoing cooperation. Focal Point of the Department of Wildlife Conservation Chandani Wilson and Wilpattu National Park Warden Chamath Lakshman were also present during the ceremony.