Further committing to its social and economic development initiatives in the Southern Province, Sri Lanka’s diversified agribusiness company Watawala Plantations PLC (CSE: WATA) recently handed over a dispensary and a modern, fully equipped preschool with digital learning facilities and play area equipment to the people of Kotelawala Village, Udugama in Galle.
The official handing over ceremony of the dispensary and Montessori to the public was graced by Minister of Plantation – Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Member of the Parliament – Isuru Dodangoda, Watawala Plantations Director – Vish Govindasamy, Watawala Plantations Chief Executive Officer – Binesh Pananwala, Watawala Plantations Deputy General Manager – Galle District – Dhanushka Daswatte, key government officials and WATA employees.
The donation, which is a part of WATA’s ongoing social welfare programme titled ‘Watawala Kalana Mithru’, will uplift 678 families and more than 2500 villagers in the area by offering free healthcare and education facilities. The total investment of the project was Rs. 10 million.
Speaking at the ceremony, Minister of Plantation, Dr. Ramesh Pathirana said, “Watawala Plantations is one of the foremost companies in the country that actively engage in uplifting the livelihood of different stakeholders of the plantation community. Over the years, Watawala Plantations has always supported the government and its various development initiatives in this region and across Sri Lanka”.
“The company annualy allocates a huge amount of money to develop the plantation company. Watawala Plantations is recognised as one of the most valued plantation companies among the 23 RPCs in Sri Lanka. For the measures taken to improve the lives of these innocent people from Kotelawala village, I thank the company from the bottom of my heart. I wish them nothing but the best to continue such great initiatives for a long time,” the Minister also said.
Watawala Plantations Chief Executive Officer, Binesh Pananwala said, “As a responsible agribusiness company in the country, we always strive hard to uplift lives of our direct and indirect stakeholders of the plantation community through several social welfare initiatives. The request to build a new dispensary and a Montessori came at a district development committee meeting, which was chaired by His Excellency the President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. We took up his request passionately, and today, we are privileged to hand these donations to our beloved people in Kotelawala Village”.
Watawala Plantations, under their social welfare programme, aims to develop and transform Kotelawala village into a model village in the Galle District under five key elements – education, healthcare, sports, life skills and guidance and livelihood.
The company is vying to implement a medium-term program where the Kotelawala village children will be given the opportunity to practice and compete in sports such as volleyball and table tennis and be a part of a strong sports program hosted by WATA.
It also entails a life and career guidance programme that aims to nurture and fortify the aspirations of the community. As a long term goal, the company looks to launch an organic farming initiative to uplift people’s lives in the area economically.
