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“There are many obstacles in the way of these gifted twins such as poverty which prevents them from fully recognizing their potential. I say poverty is the foremost difficulty because a family which prepares to provide for one baby is suddenly burdened with another. This makes things twice as hard for a poor family.”

Sri Lanka is home to more than 15,000 twins. Though this may be a small percentage of twins globally, it is a fact that brings great pride to twins Upuli and Chamali Gamage. They are the founding members of the National Twins Cultural Centre, the first of its kind in Sri Lanka. "As a twin, I realized that we are born with many talents and skills, more so than single children. Twins are especially aesthetically gifted in the disciplines of music, singing, dancing, drama and art", said president of the National Twins Centre Upuli Gamage. Upuli and sister Chamali Gamage, who is Vice President of this centre, felt the need to open such a centre because twins in Sri Lanka are very rarely appreciated or recognized as a uniquely talented group of individuals.

The National Twins Centre is a non-profit organisation which currently has 6500 members since its inauguration on 23 August 1993. "We do not accept any donations directly. We put the donor and the needy individual in touch. We act as facilitators during charitable acts," said Gamage. Our main objectives are to help with the basic needs of twins that are not financially capable and also help them recognize their talents".

Most twins in this country are born into very poor families. Times are difficult for these people and extra mouths to feed are not always welcomed. "There are many obstacles in the way of these gifted twins such as poverty which prevents them from fully recognizing their potential. I say poverty is the foremost difficulty because a family which prepares to provide for one baby is suddenly burdened with another. This makes things twice as hard for a poor family," she says. The Centre maintains a data base of the needy and tries to match them with donor twins, who are financially better off, to help them out. Such twins lack nutrition, clothing and education all of which are basic human needs.

Currently 325 scholarships have been sourced through the centre for educational needs of twins island wide. A further 270 twins receive aid for basic needs such as food and clothing. All this is done through donations given by member twins and well wishers. The National Twins Centre has carried out many projects during its 9 year existence. " We have a twins dancing troupe, twins singing troupe and we hope to open a twins sports club in December,"she said. These troupes are the first of its kind in the world."

The National Twins Day, which falls on 23 August, was a gala event for the centre. Minister Karu Jayasuriya graced the event which was held at the Maharagama Youth Centre. More than 800 twins took part in the variety show organised by the centre. The National Twins song was unveiled during the ceremony and the key areas in focus were peace, harmony and the well being of all people." We hope to gain recognition by the government for the welfare of twins islandwide".

"We have no national status as yet. But we are in talks with the Government to gain this status next year. We want to put this event on the calendar and thus far the Government has been very cooperative", said Gamage. The centre is also interested in involving twins from diverse cultures to be part of their team. "Next month, we are planning a cultural show in Kilinochchi to gain members from the war torn areas. The cultural fair will be a good way of involving our performing troupes and the public. The Government has pledged their support for this project."

Next year is an important period for the Twins National Centre. It hopes to host the Twins World Congress in Colombo. Countries such as Canada and the US will participate.

"This event will depend on future financing and we hope that NGOs, the private sector and the public will support our cause. This will be an honour for Sri Lanka".