The Sri Lanka School of Prosthetics and Orthotics (SLSPO) is a collaboration between the Sri Lanka Ministry of Health, the Nippon Foundation of Japan and the Cambodia Trust.

It has always been a goal of the Cambodia Trust's to share its expertise in other low income countries. In 2004, after several years of planning, SLSPO was established as a partnership project.

Sri Lanka is emerging from more than thirty years of civil conflict and consequently needs to plan for the rehabilitation of victims - both military and civilian - from both sides of the conflict. With an aging population, the disabled population is increasing, hence a comprehensive plan for physical rehabilitation is required.

As part of that planning, the Cambodia Trust was invited to establish a new training school, SLSPO, modelled on the Cambodian school we’ve been operating since 1994.

SLSPO is a locally registered organisation with the Cambodia Trust in the roles of project manager, facilitator, board member and technical advisor.This new arrangement means that at the end of the process of development, the Sri Lankan school will be locally owned and supported by our main project partner, the Ministry of Health.

Until that handover, to be planned after 2009, the school will be Governed by a local Board representing international and local people from a broad spectrum of society and Government.The project is fully funded for both implementation and facilitation by The Nippon Foundation.

With this new model of working, we not only demonstrate an excellent model of sustainable development, we also demonstrate to the region that Cambodia and the Cambodia Trust has a contribution to make to the world community.

Find out more at www.slspo.com

[Photo above: the first SLSPO student intake]

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