ICT Centre for youths opens in Tudella, Ja-Ela

Lafarge Mahaweli Cement and Microsoft, two premier multinational companies operating in Sri Lanka along with Sarvodaya, the country's foremost non governmental organization, declared open a state-of-the-art ICT centre in Tudella, Ja-Ela.

The ICT Center, which will provide educational opportunities for the youth in and around the Tudella area is one of several planned under an MoU signed between the three organizations earlier this year.

The Opening Ceremony was attended by Susantha Perera, Head of Sales and Marketing of Lafarge Mahaweli Cement; Tracy Hannibalsz, Sales Communication Executive of Lafarge and Isura Silva, Manager of Sarvodaya-Fusion.

Addressing the gathering, Isura Silva, Manager of Sarvodaya-Fusion stated that although Sri Lanka's literacy rate stands at 90 percent, IT literacy does not exceed 20 percent. Therefore, the need of the hour was to resort to a comprehensive plan to increase the level of IT literacy in the country.

"IT should play a pivotal role where the country's development is concerned," he said.

He added that the ICT centre in Tudella was the brainchild of Anurag Kak, Managing Director of Lafarge Mahaweli Cement. "Through the ICT centre, we are expecting to train more than 80 students on a yearly basis" he said. Lafarge Mahaweli Cement sponsors the ICT Centre financially while Microsoft Sri Lanka provides its IT infrastructure.

Sarvodaya-Fusion, the IT arm of Sarvodaya, will overlook the operations of the centre, which is the first of its kind to be established under the MoU. Lafarge, Microsoft and Sarvodaya will work towards establishing a number of similar facilities across the country, in the future, an initiative that also falls in line with the Government's plans to increase IT literacy in the country.