Sunlight uplift SMEs through ‘Manudam Viyamana’ scheme

Unilever Sri Lanka, under its flagship brand Sunlight, has entered into a partnership with the Small Enter p r i s e s Development Division of the Ministry of Youth & Sports, and Singer Fashion Academy, to help uplift the economic stability of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the garment sector, t h rough its ‘ Manudam Viyamana’ initiative.

The programme signifies Sunlight’s unwavering commitment to continue upholding the growth of SMEs who have been greatly impacted by the pandemic and subsequent economic challenges, the company said in a media re l e a s e . Complimentary online workshops will be conducted with an expert lecture panel from the Singer Fashion Academy on business fundamentals, targeting 10,000 entrepreneurs. Of the registered programme participants, 250 individuals will be awarded a cash grant, which they may use to uplift the standards of their business.

To mark the inception of this collaboration, a media conference was held at the Duncan

White Auditorium, Ministry of Sports, in the presence of Chief Guest, Namal Rajapaksa - Minister of Youth and Sports & State Minister of Digital Technology and Enterprise Development; Sudheera Jayarathne - Director of the Small Enterprises Development Division; Sharmila Bandara - Marketing Director, Homecare, Foods & Refreshments and Water of Unilever Sri Lanka; and other dignitaries.

Sudheera Jayarathne – Dire c t o r of the Small Enterprises Development Division, stated, “We are pleased to see Sunlight coming forward to support the SME sector which makes up a large part of Sri Lanka’s economy, with 1 million SMEs accounting for 75 per cent of all businesses. We have noticed a significant skills gap within the garment SME industry and are confident that these workshops, which are freely and easily accessible, will assist these entrepreneurs in gaining much needed knowledge to propel them forward in their journey of growing their business.”