Figures from the Fisheries and Aquatic Resources ministry show that during the first nine months of 2006, Sri Lanka produced 172,460 tons of fish, 74 percent higher than the same period of last year.

    Fernando said 84 percent of the agricultural land including 75 percent of paddy lands which were affected by the tsunami are back in cultivation now.

    During the tsunami, 84 hotels or one-third of the total found along the southern and eastern coastal belts suffered some degree of damage.

    Fernando said 90 percent of the hotels has been fully reconstructed, adding that only seven hotels damaged by the waves remain to be renovated at present.

    According to the Sri Lanka Tourist Board (SLTB), the country managed to attract 520,378 tourists for the first 11 months of 2006, representing an increase of 4.5 percent than the same period of 2005. It was also 4 percent higher than the first 11 months of 2004.

    Sri Lanka welcomed 549,308 visitors in 2005 and the board is hoping to equal the score this year.

    However, Fernando said the rebuilding process of the north and east was seriously affected by the ongoing military conflict between the government troops and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

    The government said more than 3,500 people have been killed since December 2005 with the escalating of military conflict in the north and east.

    A report from the United Nations Office of the Special Envoy for Tsunami Recovery also pointed out the relatively slow pace of recovery in the north and east.

    "Affected communities in the east and particularly, the north have experienced a slower pace of progress than those in the south and west of the country," said the report.

    "This pattern is, again, partially related to practical constraints, many arising from the more difficult conflict context constraining delivery in the north and east, while stronger infrastructure and private sector support has favored faster delivery in the south," the report added.