Let's spread love
and share hope together.
A community-built relief organisation working out of Kinniya, in Sri Lanka's Eastern Province — showing up with food, water, schooling and shelter wherever a family needs a hand.
NHDR is a small, dedicated non-governmental organisation founded in 2023 & run by volunteers who took the idea of "showing up" seriously. We work directly with families across the Eastern Province — no layers, no delay — guided by one measure of success: excellent volunteering, not the number of projects on a page.
Our founder, M. Mohamed Rusly, brought together like-minded volunteers to build an organisation with a clear identity in the community it serves — accountable to the people who fund it and the people it stands beside.
Building a higher level of social development through humanitarian relief in Sri Lanka.
Guiding and assisting communities through advocacy, counselling, livelihood, education, emergency care and support for widows and orphans.
Beneficiaries are identified from verified, government-referenced lists — every project reported back to donors, on time.
Thirteen ways we show up
From the first hours after a flood to a scholarship that keeps a student in school for another year — this is the full range of NHDR's work, drawn straight from our project charter.
Emergency Relief
Search & rescue, food distribution, shelter, WASH and non-food items in the first hours of a crisis.
Awareness Programs
Community workshops, school outreach and campaigns that build lasting support for people in need.
Child Education
Scholarships, learning materials, teacher training and inclusive classrooms for every child.
Women Care
Health clinics, vocational training, microfinance, legal aid and safe spaces for women.
Disability Care
Accessible housing, adaptive sport, job training and inclusion for people with disabilities.
Livelihood
Microenterprise, farming, fishery and handicraft support so families can earn sustainably.
Youth Development
Leadership training, mentorship, digital skills and employment pathways for young people.
Water & Sanitation
Clean water systems, sanitation infrastructure and hygiene education for whole communities.
Cultural Support
Documenting heritage, and hosting festivals that celebrate every community's traditions.
Housing
Affordable, accessible housing for families living in inadequate or unsafe shelter.
Poverty Alleviation
Microfinance, skills training and food security for the most vulnerable households.
Health Care
Mobile clinics, maternal health programmes and community health-worker training.
Scholarship Programmes
Need- and merit-based scholarships that keep students in school and university.
Recent work, in the field
Three programmes, photographed as they happened — not staged, not stock.
Reaching families the road can't
When December floodwaters cut off villages across the Eastern Province, our team went in by boat with hot meals packed for the day, working alongside naval transport to reach people stranded at the water's edge. Children were often the first to receive a meal box; elders and those unable to travel were served where they sat.
A pack at the door before iftar
Every Ramadan, volunteers carry rice, oil and staple groceries directly to households that would otherwise go without — door to door, so that fasting families can break it together. It's quiet work: no queues, no waiting in the sun, just a knock and a handoff.
Fruit, milk and a full morning
At schools across Kinniya, volunteers set out bananas, yoghurt cups and packed snacks for children before the day's lessons begin — a small, steady addition to attendance and concentration that costs little and matters a great deal.
The thank-you wall
Every rice bag and grocery parcel is signed for with a photo, not a signature — our way of showing donors exactly where a contribution lands. These are unposed, taken at the doorstep, moments after handover.
What's shipped so far
Learning materials distributed to schoolchildren
Festival clothing distributed among children in need
Scholarships awarded to the poorest-ranked students
Water well projects built for communities in the Eastern Province
Food packs delivered to families during Ramadan and emergencies
December 2024 flood response reaching boat-access villages
Rice & grocery parcels delivered door-to-door, photo-verified
School nutrition mornings run with local volunteers
Future projects
What we're building toward next — pending funding and partnership. Not a queue, not in order of priority: a working list.
Accountable by design
We're a young organisation — our registration is still moving through the Divisional Secretariat. Here's exactly how we handle every donation while that process completes.
- Beneficiary lists — widows, the poor, and people with disabilities — come from reliable, government-referenced sources to keep selection fair.
- Every project is followed by implementation, then public feedback, then a written report filed internally.
- A proper audit and accounting system governs the general proceedings of NHDR.
- Donors have the right to examine and claim documents relating to their own funding, at any time.
- Nothing is implemented outside NHDR's own protocol systems — donations are never redirected.
Organisation record
Be the hand that lifts others up
A wider look at the people and moments behind the programme pages above.
Become a volunteer
We're thrilled by anyone drawn to this work. NHDR values the unique contribution each volunteer brings — whether that's a few hours on distribution day or an ongoing role in the field. If your skills and time align with our goals, we want you on board.
"We invite individuals and organisations who share our passion to join us on this journey — whether volunteering, partnering, or supporting our initiatives."
— Chairperson, NHDRDonate now
We work with the needy people of Sri Lanka and have done since our first year. Take a keen interest in the people this reaches — please be kind enough to give.
Bank transfer
Direct deposits reach the field fastest. Please use the reference "Donation" so it's logged correctly on our end.
Get in touch
For larger gifts, partnerships, or questions about where funding goes, reach us directly.