Vitol aids Youth Progressive Foundation to empower youth in cultural harmony
Saturday, 14 September 2013 00:00
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In recognition of exemplary efforts by Sri Lanka’s Youth Progressive Foundation (YPF) to empower disadvantaged youth, the Vitol Charitable Foundation UK pledged a generous grant of US$ 12,766 for a yearlong project. Four interconnected children and parents’ library societies and English language labs were founded, linking the four children’s resource centres of the YPF through state of the art multimedia equipment.
Established in July 2005 in the aftermath of the tsunami, the YPF addressed the urgent need to help families and children who were left without homes and a means of livelihood. YPF is a public service organisation based in Sri Lanka, which primarily provides English and IT education and general welfare to over 550 less fortunate children. The Vitol Foundation was established by the Vitol Group in 2006 to support projects that promote better living conditions for children living in deprivation. It works with 200 charities across the globe, helping to fund a wide range of development programs and is the recipient of the Save the Children’s first ever Corporate Emergency Partner of the Year Award in 2011.
The YPF operates Children’s Resource Centres (CRCs) across four districts beginning in Hambantota, followed by three others in Kataragama, Eravur and Pothuvil. The Vitol partnership project is based on the identified needs of children and adults living in these provinces. A focal point connecting these centres in the North, East and South of Sri Lanka is vital for developing economic and cultural interactions among communities that were previously isolated or marginalised as a result of the prolonged ethnic war. This forum is designed to develop positive cultural and social relationships between the communities for a better and inclusive society.
The language lab serves to facilitate learning of all three national languages so that communication between the communities will no longer be a barrier. Improving IT skills of children and parents from remote areas is also essential for development, employment and regular activities such as using the internet, which they may not otherwise have knowledge of or access to.
The Youth Progressive Foundation’s CRCs have become one of the foremost volunteer educational and welfare institutions in Sri Lanka. Through the Children’s and Parents’ societies, the CRC children and their parents are building friendships among different communities and religions, sharing their customs and traditions as well as learning each other’s languages.
