Page 10 - CICT Magazine e-Version May 2021

CICT launches ‘Hope Village Project’ in Sri Lanka with Rs 17 million Community Centre for
Pannila
A building for a community centre that will provide
multiple essential services to some 2000 people living in
Pannila near Horana began to take shape this week under
a unique new community initiative launched in Sri Lanka
by Colombo International Container Terminals (CICT)
with an initial commitment of Rs 17 million.
The two storey building to be constructed with the funds
provided by CICT and its parent company, the China
Merchants Group (CMG), is billed to be the first of many
such donations of infrastructure and other life-improving
requisites under CICT’s ‘Hope Village Project’ in Sri
Lanka.
The new Community Centre scheduled to be completed
by the end of the year will house several local government Village project of CMCF and CICT. The project aims to
offices under one roof and will include facilities that
improve the quality of life of the villagers, such as
an auditorium, a library, and a grocery store. Local
government offices including the Grama Sevaka office
and the Samurdhi Department are among those to be
relocated in the new Community Centre.
Pannila is the first of many villages to come under the
umbrella of the Hope Village project, the purpose of
which is to develop rural communities in Sri Lanka that
lack adequate funding and improve the living conditions
of people, said Mr Grant Yang, CSR Manager at CICT.
The project, which is completely funded through the
China Merchants Charitable Foundation (CMCF), the
CSR arm of the China Merchants Group, commenced
with a ground-breaking ceremony in Pannila on 23rd June
2020.
The foundation stone for the Community Centre was laid
by CICT CEO Mr Jack Huang, CICT Chief Financial
Officer Mr Raymond Mu, Chief Accountant Officer
of Kalutara District Secretariat Ms B.A.M Chandrika,
Divisional Secretary of Horana Ms K.D.S Sajeewana, and
the Rural Development Director of the Western Province
Ms R. M. Dinesha P. Kumari. The building’s construction
will take place with the co-operation of the Divisional
Secretariat of Horana and the District Secretariat of
Kalutara.
Speaking at the ceremony, CICT CEO Mr Jack Huang
said: “CICT is the only deep water terminal in South Asia,
and through the Hope Village Project we are honoured to
connect the success of our business with the community.
This is just the beginning. For as long as we operate in
Sri Lanka, CICT will continue contributing generously to
local communities.”
Commenting on the construction of the Community
Centre, Ms Nadeesha Priyadarshani, a Pannila resident
said: “We look forward to the completion of this building,
07
especially because soon all government offices will be
under one roof and this will save us much hassle and add
convenience to our lives. Our children too will benefit
from the Community Centre; we have not had a library in
the vicinity before, and now their concerts and events too
can take place at the Community Centre.”
CICT and CMCF are no strangers to supporting the
people of Pannila. In December 2019 the Company
provided 120 senior citizens of Pannila with gift packs
containing nutritional food along with other essential
items and some 300 students with school supplies for the
new school year, to the value of Rs 1.8 million.
Pannila 612-B Division is an area empowered by the Hope
help Pannila develop into a desirable residential area, with
a fully-fledged community centre, a children’s playground,
and livelihood support for the needy. The overall objective
of the Hope Village Project is to reach evaluated villages
in Sri Lanka, help alleviate poverty, and explore the road
of sustainable development.
Recently, CMCF and CICT also donated custom
wheelchairs worth US$ 9000 to three ITF-ranked tennis
players as part of its continuing support to the Wheelchair
Tennis Programme of the Sri Lanka Tennis Association
(SLTA). A total of Rs 30 million has been donated by
CICT to this programme between 2015 and 2019. CICT
and CMCF have also supported a cataract surgery project
in Sri Lanka in collaboration with the National Eye
Hospital.
CICT manages the South Terminal of the Port of
Colombo, the first and currently the only deep water
terminal in South Asia, which is equipped with facilities
to handle the largest vessels afloat. Since its inception in
2014, the terminal has incrementally grown the volume it
has handled; from 686,639 teus in 2014, to 1.56 million
teus in 2015, 2 million teus in 2016, 2.38 million teus in
2017, 2.67 million teus in 2018, and 2.9 million teus in
2019.