Ford goes beyond business to assist Sri Lanka's rural poor

The Ford Motor Company has showed its commitment to Sri Lanka in not just business but extending assistance to uplift the living standards of rural poor, Ford's local franchise holder disclosed in a media release.

In this endeavour, Ford Motor Company, represented in Sri Lanka by Future Automobiles (Pvt) Ltd, a subsidiary of Softlogic Holdings, recently awarded a grant to World Vision Lanka to carry out a water and sanitation project in Kattumurivukulam village, in Vaharai, Batticaloa.

The grant of Rs. 3 million will help World Vision Lanka to provide safe drinking water to approximately 220 families - including 786 adults and 394 children - living in Kattumurivukulam village. Water is one of the biggest issues for the community in Kattumurivukulam with only five usable wells and two usable tube wells for all their water needs.

The release said that in consultation with the National Water Supply and Drainage Board, the joint water project will provide them water even during the dry seasons and the families will no longer have to travel far to look for water. The village school will also receive water and sanitation facilities completed with hand washing units.

"This project by World Vision Lanka demonstrates exactly what the Ford Conservation and Environmental Grants stands for, by helping increase access to clean water and improved sanitation among local communities," said David Westerman, Managing Director, Asia Pacific Emerging Markets, Ford Motor Company.

The project will be completed in consultation with and participation of the community and its ownership will eventually be transferred to the community based organisations (CBOs), in order to ensure the sustainability of the project in the long run.

As part of the Conservation and Environmental Grants Programme in Sri Lanka, Ford has supported numerous causes over the past several years. Most recently, Ford awarded a grant to Japan Emergency NGO (JEN) to undertake a project to improve the lives of communities in Mullaitivu and Kilinochchi districts that were affected by the civil war.

In 2014, Ford awarded a US$20,000 grant to the Field Ornithology Group of Sri Lanka (FOGSL), while in 2013 the company awarded two organisations - The Tree Society of Sri Lanka and the Wanasarana Thurulatha Swechcha Society - a total of US$15,000.