Lafarge and Microsoft partner Sarvodaya

Lafarge Mahaweli Cement and Microsoft Sri Lanka, have joined Sarvodaya, to set up an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Centre in Gampaha to improve ICT skills among youth in the area.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed at the Lafarge head office in Orugodawatte, between, Managing Director, Lafarge Mahaweli Cement (Pvt) Ltd, Anurag Kak, Country Manager Microsoft Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, Sriyan de Silva Wijeyeratne and General Secretary, Lanka Jathika Sarvodaya Sangamaya, Dr. Vinya S. Ariyarathne. President, Microsoft South East Asia New Markets, Jamie Harper was also present.

Anurag Kak said that ICT is a key area in terms of development. "We realised that there was a lot of room for ICT education in Sri Lanka to penetrate the grassroot level.

The project was launched to increase opportunities available for local youth to improve ICT skills." "To fulfill this, we partnered with Microsoft and Sarvodaya. Sarvodaya has reached out to grassroot levels through its various endeavours and therefore will add value to the ICT centre project," he said.

Dr. Ariyarathna said, "Gampaha is a district where you can find urban and rural areas. Being adjacent to Colombo, Gampaha has enormous potential as far as the economy is concerned.

Therefore, we believe, an area such as Gampaha is ideal for a project of this nature. It will empower youth in the area, enhance opportunities and show them the correct path."

Sarvodaya-Fusion, the ICT education arm of Sarvodaya, will implement the project.

The manager of Sarvodaya Fusion, Isura Silva, said that the less-privileged would be given preference.