CDB propels rural IT literacy with school lab in Hambantota District

Citizens Development Business Finance Ltd (CDB) recently donated a much needed IT lab, fully equipped with computers, LCD monitors, printers, scanners, and internet facilities to HM/ Nedigamvila Kanishta Vidyalaya in Tissamaharama, in the Hambantota district.

This state-of-the-art IT lab was ceremonially opened by CDB’s Chief Executive Officer Mahesh Nanayakkara, together with senior officials of CDB, the School Principal P.N.M Kumarasinghe, students and well-wishers in Nedigamvila.

Speaking on the occasion Mr. Nanayakkara said, “The main objective of such projects is to give less privileged schools in rural areas access to information technology and thus enable them to launch into a future shaped by technological innovation. The CDB Technology Centre paves the way for students such as those at Nedigamvila Kanishta Vidyalaya to zoom in on future opportunities in the growing IT sector as well as to acquire a skill which is indispensable in any area of specialisation. Knowledge and IT skills are the foundation of one’s personal advancement in the sphere of education and employment. It is therefore an area of expertise that should be available to all students in all parts of Sri Lanka”.

Speaking on the occasion, the Principal of Nedigamvila Kanishta Vidyalaya, P.N.M. Kumarasinghe said, “Education today is being driven by technology. Our children have been deprived of these facilities for a long time. We do not have a computer centre in our town and have to travel several kilometres to access basic facilities like Internet and Email. This project by CDB, through which IT literacy can be developed, is a blessing not only to our school but also to our entire community. We are deeply grateful for their initiative and pray that this project goes from strength to strength. This will enable many more communities in this country to profit from the massive advances made in the field of Information Technology”.

One of the students of the school, Nimesha Vidukshi said, “I have heard about computers, but the nearest computer that can be accessed is in the next town. Now that CDB has given us an IT lab, my classmates and I have a new world opened to us. We will have ready access to greater information which will help us to improve our understanding of other subjects as well, thereby making a difference in our education.”

As part of its national drive to increase IT literacy, CDB plans to carry out more projects of this nature in other parts of the country.

Situating the project in the context of CDB’s ethos Nanayakkara said, “Bringing a smile of hope to the community we operate in is as important to us as the responsibility we have towards our stakeholders. Subscribing to a more holistic view of business, we place inestimable value on the wellbeing of our communities and have developed a strategic CSR framework in which all our projects of corporate social responsibility are undertaken. The framework is buttressed by our vision of uplifting the living standards of all citizens in Sri Lanka. In keeping with this vision, one of our flagship CSR projects includes enhancing the IT literacy of children attending rural schools.” The project is implemented under the CSR theme of ‘CDB Pariganaka Piyasa (CDB Technology Centre)’.

Photo caption: Students of the Nadigamwilla Kanishta Vidyalaya in Tissamaharama experience the joy of the opportunity of developing their IT knowledge.