Mastercard and Educate Lanka combine to offer education and employment

Mastercard has joined hands with Educate Lanka to empower Sri Lanka's young women as part of its "Doing Well, Doing Good" initiative.

As part of the collaboration, Mastercard will fund a scholarship programme as well as a skills development and mentorship platform, supported by the company. The initiative seeks to build a more inclusive future for these women, in line with Mastercard's global commitment to advancing social and sustainability causes within the communities they operate in, according to a company media release.

Manjula Dissanayake, Founder and President of Educate Lanka, said, "For over 10 years, Educate Lanka has been committed to and driven by its paramount mission: to empower every young person from marginalised backgrounds in Sri Lanka with relevant competencies and skills demanded by an ever changing world. By preparing our youth to meet the dynamic demands of the 21st century global citizenry, we are contributing to a stronger, skilled, and inclusive workforce and leadership that would lead Sri Lanka towards its socioeconomic advancement and global competitiveness."

The Mastercard scholarship programme will provide 50 women from underprivileged backgrounds with mentorship, skills training, as well as employment opportunities through Educate Lanka's programmes. Scholarship recipients will be identified by Educate Lanka, who will then monitor their long-term progress with semi-annual feedback and evaluation.

In addition, the mentorship and skills development platform aims to empower approximately 200 female students in its first year through Educate Lanka's various programmes. Along with sessions on career and workforce advancement, the initiative will also engage members of Sri Lanka's business community to mentor students on leadership development.

"Access to education has always been a crucial key to ending the cycle of poverty, and we hope to expand this access through this partnership. We are proud to be working with Educate Lanka and do our part in ensuring a brighter future for not only the youth of the country but for the whole nation," said R. B. Santosh Kumar, Country Manager, Sri Lanka and Maldives, Mastercard. Mr. Dissanayake founded Educate Lanka in 2007, which has so far provided funding from secondary through higher education for more than 1000 students.