Sampath Bank completes CSR initiative ‘Wewata Jeewayak’
Sampath Bank stepped forward to provide much-needed support to the farmers of the Northern region who are battling intense heat and unforgiving soil by restoring and gifting the Vavuniya Kidachchoori Tank to the people of the region under its award-winning Corporate Sustainability Responsibility (CSR) initiative, ‘Wewata Jeewayak’.
Sampath Bank Managing Director Ayodhya Iddawela Perera, Senior Deputy General Manager Marketing & Customer Care Tharaka Ranwala, Chief Human Resource Officer Dr. Lalith Weragoda, Development Commissioner General Agrarian Development A.H.M.L. Aberathna, government officials, Kannagi Farmers’ Association officers and members residents were present at the occasion.
Farmers of the North struggle to cultivate their lands due to minimum resources but make a significant contribution to the nation’s economy by providing essential food items thereby, helping to strengthen the agro economy of the nation.
Amidst such a backdrop where they are faced with numerous hardships on multiple fronts, these Northern farmers also harvest hundreds of acres of paddy to supply a significant amount of rice to the nation. Having understood the vital role played by these Northern farmers, Sampath Bank took the necessary steps to commence the restoration of the Vavuniya Kidachchoori Tank as part of ‘Wewata Jeewayak’, making the initiative the first irrigation project of the Northern Province and the 20th overall across the island.
Having eventually grown accustomed to surviving on a single harvest season, through their Farmers’ Association they approached several organisations in the hope of receiving support to restore the tank and subsequently connected with Sampath Bank’s ‘Wewata Jeewayak’ programme to meet their objectives.
Accordingly, Sampath Bank took on the project under the ‘Wewata Jeewayak’ programme to restore the Vavuniya Echankulam Kidachchoori Tank with the aim of ensuring a better future for farmers and their families while also rejuvenating dying traditional irrigation systems. While 290 farming families occupying 185 acres of land are direct beneficiaries of the Kidachchoori Tank, the dilapidated state of the tank in recent years has greatly hampered their farming activities. The tank’s two sluices were not functioning well and water was wasted due to significant leaks in both sluice gates.
Sampath Bank Managing Director Ayodhya Iddawela Perera stated, “I am happy to announce the 20th successful tank restoration in Sri Lanka under our ‘Wewata Jeewayak’ Corporate Sustainability Responsibility initiative carried out at the Vavuniya Kidachchoori Tank. The accelerated restoration effort has delivered a complete irrigation system to the hardworking farming community of the Northern Province.”
Sampath Bank commenced the ‘Wewata Jeewayak’ CSR project about two decades ago with the aim of restoring the dying traditional irrigation systems and contributing to the upliftment of agriculture to strengthen the economy of the farmers in the dry region that supplies rice to the country.
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