NDB: Principle sponsor for Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards

NDB is the Principal Sponsor of the prestigious Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards (APEA) scheduled to be held on 17th February 2013. Enterprise Asia a non-governmental organization for entrepreneurship, based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia is the owner and organizer of the APEA. Enterprise Asia, in association with Sri Lanka Malaysia Business Council (SLMBC) of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce initiated the event in Sri Lanka with the patronage of NDB as a principle sponsor in 2012. NDB s involvement in the event for the second consecutive year, establishes Bank’s commitment towards recognizing Sri Lankan entrepreneurs and business leaders while fostering an entrepreneurial culture in the country.

As a pioneer in project lending and SME financing in Sri Lanka, NDB has contributed immensely to stimulate the growth of these sectors. Over the past 3 decades the Bank has financially supported close to 90,000 SMEs island-wide, creating over 900,000 employment opportunities. NDB also provides the much needed advisory services both to entrepreneurs as well as lending institutions.

Through its island wide SME workshops, the Bank provides entrepreneurs with guidance to access markets, knowledge on the use of appropriate technology and even branding expertise to help them effectively market their products.

Commenting on the sponsorship, Indrajit Wickramasinghe Chief Operating Officer of NDB said “It is a great honour for NDB to be a part of the Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards for the 2nd consecutive year. NDB places special emphasis on fostering Entrepreneurship with a strong belief that developing this segment will lead to the exponential growth that the nation is aspiring for. Therefore as a Bank that has been a fore runner in entrepreneur development, NDB was instrumental in introducing the APEA to Sri Lanka last year.

The awards create a unique opportunity for Sri Lankan business leaders to be recognized on an international platform.”“In the current business dynamics, geographic barriers keep colliding at a rapid pace making the world one big marketplace of seamless opportunity. With initiatives such as the APEA we aim to inspire our local business leaders to establish their businesses within this global marketplace by enhancing their business propositions and operations to meet global standards. This is part of NDB’s contribution towards nation building,” Wickramasinghe reiterated.

Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards is a regional recognition program for outstanding entrepreneurs across Asia and is currently held in 14 ASEAN nations including Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, South Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Brunei, Thailand, Vietnam, Macau, Cambodia and India.