The program is targeting coastal mangroves that were affected by the 2004 Indian tsunami.
Mangroves ecosystems are made up of plants and shrubs that can grow in brackish water which in turn succour for fish, crustaceans and birds, reptiles and mammals.
"Only after the tsunami did people start to realize the importance and the need to manage the coastal ecosystems as one, without taking the beach, the mangrove or the river estuaries separately," M S Wickramasinghe chairman of the MFF national steering committee told LBO.
"Earlier we were using them as it is, as a resource base where people can do fishing and eco tourism activities."
The MFF works in partnership with government and private sector entities and has been working on activating local community based organization and conservation charities after it started last year.
The NCB has started schemes to educate and help local fishing communities to resolve problems, conserve mangroves and coastal ecosystems in their locality by giving small grants up to 2.5 million rupees (23,000 dollars).
Mangroves play an important role in the lives of coast dwellers as it is a breeding ground for fish, prawns and shrimp which is the livelihood of those communities.
"We saw after the tsunami that in certain areas where the mangroves were intact, the inland plantation was also intact and there was minimal damage to the human lives as well as properties," Wickramasinghe said.
The waves of the 2004 tsunami where 31,000 were killed and displaced a million, flooded the coastal regions from the north east down to the south of the island.
The mangroves that were along the coast in some parts of the island took the brunt of the wave, reducing the damage to inland structures and vegetation.
Wickramasinghe says the coastal ecosystem is also damaged by pollution and climate change.
Coastal pollution takes places through various sources such as land based activities, fertilizer, shipping, sewage dumping and garbage.
Fertilizer used in agricultural crops or tea gardens in Nuwara Eliya can also have an impact on coastal ecosystems Wickramasinghe says, since the chemicals will travel and end up in the coast, through the waterways of the island
Sri Lanka also lacks sewage treatment plants and some factories release contaminated water and waste straight into rivers and waterways due to the of lack of regulations and penalties for polluting.
"Local authorities also use beaches as waste dumping areas."
The climate change quickening the melting of ice caps have elevated sea levels which increase the salinity of the coastal ecosystem. The imbalance also affects the mangroves.
"One of the areas we are looking at in terms of climate change is adaptation, the national position of Sri Lanka for climate change is adaptation."
"We do not intend to address this issue only confined to the coastal ecosystem or the coast, we have to address it from the interiors of the island also." Wickramasinghe said
As a result, coastal communities have established a local waste management project in Weligama where they promote composting and recycling of material not composed, he said.
Mangroves also promote nature tourism which helps local communities get additional employment and income.
As a result, the Ceylon Hoteliers Association has also contributed to the conservation and development of the ecosystems, the mangroves and river estuaries to help promote nature tourism.
Around 85 percent of Sri Lanka's hotels are built on the coast and nature tourists use the coastal ecosystem for bird watching, and observe fish and plants.
Private sector companies such as Dilmah and companies in the export processing zones in Sri Lanka have also contributed to the MFF initiative, Wickramasinghe says.
"We get money from donor programs and we encourage the small NGOs (non governmental organizations) to put their money for the smaller programs to ensure sustainability."
"We have got an initial funding of about 100,000 dollars to start off the small grants programs."
"Once we develop the national programs and start relating to this program (MFF small grants), we can expect more money from various sources," he says.
Australia, Germany, Norway and Sida, United Nations Development Program and the United Nations Environment Program have contributed around 12 million dollars for the MFF initiative.
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