The first-ever two day aid conference, 'Sri Lanka Development Forum', started yesterday with over 100 representatives from donor nations and agencies, and was chaired by Finance Minister Sarath Amunugama, at the Earl Regency Hotel in Kandy.

Together with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) a survey identified eight broad areas of development goals in Sri Lanka. President, Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga opened up the development forum, which will discuss all aspects of economic development, and address the delegates.

"Sri Lanka has long been at the forefront of human development among developing countries. Access to health and education is widespread and the results have been impressive," expresses the UNDP's resident representative, Miguel Bermeo in Sri Lanka. He also points out that the tsunami disaster and two-decades of internal conflict have tremendously affected the growth and development of country.

"There are about five million people living in poverty in Sri Lanka, perhaps more," says the report. It is also reported that the decades-long separatist war has magnified the poverty figures even more. In the report also the issue of HIV/AIDS is included as well as malaria, environment, public life and regional and international trade.

The plan of Sri Lanka is to improve the lives of over five million poor people whose lives were devastated by the tsunami. The government is focusing on developing housing, roads, railways and other infrastructure and on generating job opportunities for thousands of affected people.

The Sri Lanka Development Forum is offering a great opportunity to review and strengthen relations with the international community and seek funds on the promises of the government to help tsunami victims and the rebuilding process.

The meeting and analysis has been made by the government under the co-ordination of the National Council of Economic Development, and it aims to assess the United Nation's target of halving poverty in Sri Lanka by the year 2015.