Unilever Sri Lanka invests millions in community development projects in the North

For over seven decades, Unilever Sri Lanka has been meeting the everyday needs of the people of Sri Lanka through popular brands such as Sunlight, Lifebuoy Astra, Surf, Lux, Signal, Sunsilk and Pears to name but a few.

This iconic company with its mission ‘to make people feel good, look good and get more out of life’ has conducted its operations with a strong sense of responsibility towards the people it works with, the communities it serves and the environment it impacts.

Whilst the North and East of Sri Lanka has been liberated after nearly 30 years of conflict, many societal challenges have yet to be overcome before the people of the area and the nation at large enjoy the peace dividend. Unilever Sri Lanka believes that organisations which will benefit from the emerging opportunities must step up to the plate to help the government restore living standards of the people of these regions.

Accordingly, Unilever Sri Lanka has stepped forward to help provide much needed water to several villages being resettled. The company has invested Rs. 3 million to renovate 20 wells in the Vavuniya district. The first two renovated wells were handed over to the village of Kokeliya on 4th of June by Chairman Amal Cabraal. 18 more wells will be renovated and restored across several villages in the Vavuniya district.

“We chose to provide good sources of clean water to these communities to help them rebuild their livelihoods because human life is centred on water and so is our business. Water is integral to manufacturing and so it is to the use of many of our products from detergents to tea. As such, there is a good fit between what the community requires and our business, making our support sustainable”, stated the Chairman. A unique feature of this project was the fact that the wells were restored by the villagers themselves, with Unilever providing material, machinery and financial support.

In yet another project in the North, one of Unilever’s key brands – Surf Excel led the effort to develop 8 schools in the Mannar and Vavuniya districts at a cost of Rs. 5.5 million. Surf Excel’s social mission is to help children fulfil their full potential by enjoying the freedom to express themselves. Surf Excel, espouses the belief that if children are to develop in a holistic manner, they must be allowed to experiment and express their creativity both at study and at play. To foster this belief, Unilever Sri Lanka’s Surf Excel provided these schools with much needed facilities such as playgrounds, access to clean water, art rooms and other amenities, touching the lives of thousands of children. The new facilities were officially handed over to the school authorities in a ceremony held in the first week of June. Apart from the official hand over, Surf Excel organized several competitions for the children of these schools to unearth latent talent, thereby helping them learn, develop and achieve their full potential.

Furthermore, Unilever’s baby care brand, Pears, in conjunction with the Sri Lanka College of Pediatricians renovated the pediatric wards of the Cheddikulam and Vavuniya hospitals, providing much needed and urgent improvements to the health care facilities for mothers and infants. This project was undertaken at a total cost of Rs. 5.4 million.The refurbished hospitals were handed over to hospital authorities on 5th and 6th May this year. Since it was set up seven years ago, Rs. 27.5 million has been invested to date through the Pears Safe Hands Fund to uplift the health care standards in Sri Lanka, touching over 1 million lives.

Unilever believes in ‘doing well by doing good’. It is in the spirit that the company has pledged to continue giving back to society. Most of the projects will be carried out in keeping with the social missions of its brands, making it a sustainable model to add vitality to life in Sri Lanka.