Meet some of the children and their teachers from the East Coast village of Kiran near Kalkudah. Kiran is a fishing village where many people live a hand-to-mouth existence and as we all know, education is an essential part of being able to break the cycle and create a better life.   The State education provision in Sri Lanka is universal and the government also provides uniforms, including shoes, for every child.  School kids in their bright white uniforms, white socks and white shorts are a common sight across the country. Pens, pencils, sharpeners, exercise books and school bags however must be purchased by the children themselves which of course impacts on the children from the poorest families the hardest.

Lanka Real Estate has been active in the Kalkudah area for many years and this is why we chose it as the location for our first community outreach project.  Recognising that literacy, numeracy and English language proficiency are necessary for getting jobs in the area’s burgeoning leisure tourism and associated service industries, every year Lanka Real Estate funds “school packs” for approximately 160 children identified by their teachers as being the most in need. The project has been running for over seven years now and pictured above is the LRE Class of 2018 – out of uniform – gathered in the local community centre to pick up their satchels of stationery.