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Lanka Bell reduces IDD rates to India

Lanka Bell has reduced IDD calling rates to India enabling subscribers to make phone calls to the island's closest neighbour.

Working out to just 8 cents per second, this is the lowest call rate to India, in the local market, the company said.

The rate is applicable to calls made to fixed and mobile numbers in India and since billing is on a per second basis, users will only be billed for the time that they talk.

The service is offered through Lanka Bell's 'Dial 15' service and allows subscribers to make calls without the hassle of using IDD calling cards, the company said. Lanka Bell Managing Director Prasad Samarasinghe said: "This provides a substantial saving to the Sri Lankan businesses with interests in India, as it enables them to make calls at any time of the day for a very low rate."

He said that the new calling rate together with the company's recent introduction of multi-party call conference facility will give businesses a chance to be in touch with their associates or branches in India more often without worrying about high calling rates. "This will also benefit home subscribers who have their loved ones working or studying in India," Samarasinghe said.

The latest price reduction represents another step of company's commitment to 'pass on' the benefits of its Rs. 3 billion investment to connect Sri Lanka to the FLAG undersea fibre optic cable network, he said.

World Post Day celebrations

DFCC Vardhana Bank main sponsors of national event:

The World Post Day is celebrated each year on October 9, the anniversary of the establishment of the Universal Postal Union in 1874 in the Swiss Capital, Bern.

This year, in Sri Lanka, the 135th World Post Day Celebrations, organized by the Department of Posts is sponsored by DFCC Vardhana Bank.

The event is organized by the Universal Postal Union which comes under the purview of the United Nations Organization (UNO). Minister of Export Promotion and International Trade and Acting Minister Ports and Telecommunications Prof. G.L. Pieris, other Government officials, officers of the Department of Posts and Postmasters will be present. Sri Lanka Post, which has been in existence for over 209 years, employs around 17,000 persons.

It is one of the oldest Government departments in Sri Lanka and has over 4,500 outlets islandwide.

Eagle Agents to receive certification

Personal Financial Management from Wayamba University:

Eagle Insurance entered into an MoU with the Wayamba University, the only university to offer a BSc. Special degree program in Insurance, to provide a certificate level qualification in Personal Financial Management for Insurance Advisors of Eagle. This certificate will be issued by the Department of Insurance and Valuation.

"Most of our clients buy their insurance plans based on the advice given by our agents as is the case in many other international markets. According to global research over 80 percent of the customers prefer to make insurance related decisions based on face to face advice. As part of the Aviva Group, the world's fifth-largest insurer, it is our responsibility to provide services that are comparable to other Aviva companies across the globe. This is a benefit that is transferred to our valued clients." said Managing Director, Deepal Sooriyaarachchi.

It is in this context that Eagle has taken steps to further enhance the capability of its insurance professionals in the area of Personal Financial Management through a certificate course conducted by Wayamba University. This will be in addition to the preliminary IBSL examination, induction and other training programs conducted by the company and the product level licensing done at company level. This product level licensing is an international best practice voluntarily adopted by Eagle. For example unit linked products are sold only by specially internally licensed advisors of Eagle.

Deepal Sooriyaarachchi said,"We are very fortunate to have built this relationship with the Wayamba University. We are planning to complete the first batch in January next year and thereafter we will systematically cover the entire sales force. This will bring a new dimension to insurance selling in Sri Lanka. With this partnership we will be able to draw in the expertise of local academics and reciprocate by providing access to global expertise in the field of Insurance in particular and Management in General"

The Certificate of Personal Financial Management syllabus was developed by the company after considerable research and the university has brought in the much needed academic standards and the content development. Personal Financial Management focuses on making the individual firstly literate on financial affairs that need to be carefully managed and ensures that the individual is able to understand and interpret various financial products and methods available to meet the different personal financial goals.