ComBank empowers rural students

The presentation of certificates to the first batch of students that completed the inaugural course of an English language programme launched last year by the Commercial Bank of Ceylon as a community initiative, took place recently at the Kiriella Madya Maha Vidyalaya in Ratnapura.

A total of 260 students were presented certificates by the Bank's Managing Director/CEO Ravi Dias, other dignitaries of the Bank and the Principal of the school Ranjith Liyanarachchi at this event.

The four-month course conducted on behalf of the Bank by the Life English Academy (LEA), a leading English language training institution in Sri Lanka, is to be repeated at schools across the country under a national scale community initiative by Commercial Bank to take English language education to children in rural areas. The structured English education courses conducted under this programme focus on spoken English and basic writing skills as required for personal development and each student receives up to 32 hours of contact with the trainers of the Life English Academy.

The main area of focus of the Commercial Bank CSR Trust is education since it believes that empowering younger generations with education will create a better future for the country. The main activity under this initiative is to donate IT laboratories to schools around the country.

To date the Bank has donated 82 such IT labs, benefitting over 40,000 students.

Other CSR initiatives of the Bank include the presentation of scholarships and laptops to undergraduates, preservation of cultural heritage, donation of health equipment to hospitals and regional projects.