Filtered Press Release : 2024 Sep

Tokyo Cement partners the Foundation of Goodness for 9th year running

Tokyo Cement Group extended the partnership with the Foundation of Goodness (FoG) for 2024 towards the continuation of the Cricket Coaching Camps. This is the 9th successful year of this far-reaching partnership, that provides aspiring young cricketers from rural areas with access to quality training facilities to improve their cricketing talents.

The Tokyo Cement-Foundation of Goodness Cricket Coaching Academy began back in 2014 by setting up training facilities at Hikkaduwa Sri Sumangala MCC Lords and Seenigama Sri Wimalabuddhi Surrey Oval, two grounds fully equipped with indoor and outdoor nets for cricket practices, under the patronage of the Tokyo Cement Group.

Mr. S. R. Gnanam – Managing Director, Tokyo Cement Company (Lanka) PLC. presenting the 2024 Cricket Coaching Academy sponsorship to Mr. Kushil Gunasekera – Founder/Chief Trustee, Foundation of Goodness.</>

Mr. Anura De Silva, Director Sports of the Foundation of Goodness heads the Cricket Academy, which conducts monthly training sessions with professional coaching staff of the FoG, under the leadership of celebrated cricket coaches, Mr. Hemantha Devapriya and Mr. Susantha Karunarathna. Promising young school cricketers are groomed by renowned coaches as well as local and international former cricket legends who contribute their expertise from time to time. Star performers identified through the project are enrolled in an elite players’ pool, where they receive specialized training.

The success of the Southern cricket camps encouraged Tokyo Cement to extend the programme to the North in 2017, in search of future cricketing sensations. The coaching camps held in the North were received with much enthusiasm, attracting many schoolgirl and schoolboy cricketers from all age groups from areas such as Jaffna, Killinochchi, Oddusudan, Mankulam, Mullaitivu, Vavuniya and Mannar. Its long-term aim is to take 50 Northern youth under its wings, to be trained to become star class Sri Lankan cricketers.

The Cricket Coaching Academy has so far produced hundreds of outstanding schoolgirl and schoolboy cricketers who now play at Divisional and National level. This includes multiple superstars from the Sri Lanka Women’s National Team, such as Kaveesha Dilhari, Sachini Nisansala, Imesha Dulani, Kawya Kavindi, Umasha Thimeeshani, Nilakshana Sandamini, Sathya Sandeepani, Sachini Gimahani, and many others, who have brought unprecedented glory to the country, including winning the Women’s T20 Asia Cup 2024. In addition, the FOG Cricket Academy is represented in the Sri Lanka Men’s National Team by top-notch players such as Navod Paranavithana, Malsha Tharupathi, Haren Weerasinghe, S. Mathushan and many more. Star-class international players such as Vijayakanth Viyaskanth and the Captain of the Sri Lanka National Hearing-impaired Cricket Team Gimadu Malcolm are also among the distinguished talent unearthed through the Tokyo Cement-Foundation of Goodness Cricket Coaching Academy. With the renewed partnership, it is poised to create more opportunities for talented young cricketers from remote areas to achieve their dreams of a successful sports career and bring fame to our motherland.

Two Independent Non-Executive Directors appointed to the Tokyo Cement Board

Tokyo Cement Company (Lanka) PLC announces the appointment of Mr. Mano Sekaram and Mrs. Averil Anne Ludowyke as Independent Non-Executive Directors to its Board.

Mr. Mano Sekaram is a renowned tech entrepreneur and investor in the Sri Lankan IT industry with over 30 years of experience in the corporate arena. He is the Founder and Chairman of 99x Technology Sri Lanka and Asia, and Board Member of 99x Investment AS Norway, an award-winning digital product engineering company serving European markets. He was featured on the prestigious LMD100 Club for both 2019 and 2020, which highlights the A-list of Sri Lankan businesspeople driving the Nation’s growth. He was awarded the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ by the British Computer Society (BCS) at the National Best Quality Software Awards (NBQSA) 2014, for his vast contributions to the ICT industry.

Mr. Mano Sekaram

In furthering IT education and aligning the university curricula to industry needs, Mr. Sekaram has contributed as a Board Member of both the University of Jaffna and the University of Colombo, School of Computing. He is a member of the University Grants Commission (UGC) Consultative Committee for Computer Science. In addition, Mr. Sekaram sits on the Board of the Sri Lanka Technological Campus (SLTC) and is also a past Chairman of the Sri Lanka Association of Software and Service Companies (SLASSCOM), the apex body of the Sri Lankan IT/BPM sector. In August 2023, Mr. Sekaram was appointed as the Honorary Consul General for Norway in Sri Lanka.

Mrs. Averil Anne Ludowyke, FCA (CA Sri Lanka), FCMA (UK), counts over 26 years of experience at Ernst & Young and has served as a Partner from 2011 to 2022. She was lead Audit Partner at M/S Ernst & Young, of several groups of companies, and she launched and led forensics and integrity services of the firm. Her clients included banks and finance companies, and companies engaged in retail, manufacturing, telecommunications, construction, real estate, shipping and logistics, leisure, plantations and development.

She also counts for over 13 years of senior level experience in finance and accounting in the manufacturing sector, and in a relief and development organization. She is also an Independent Non-Executive Director on the Boards of Seylan Bank PLC, Ceylinco Life Insurance Ltd., and Bogala Graphite PLC. Mrs. Averil Ludowyke has been a resource person for the Director Certification Program of the Sri Lanka Institute of Directors, and the Certificate Course on Forensic Auditing of CA Sri Lanka. She has also conducted several public seminars with the CIMA, the Ministry of Public Enterprise Development, National Chamber of Commerce, ACCA, AAT, CMA and has been a panellist/presenter at the ACAMS Regional Conference of the Indian Subcontinent, the Annual Conference of the Institute of Internal Auditors, and at programs conducted by the University of Kelaniya.

With these appointments, the Board of Tokyo Cement Company (Lanka) PLC comprises of Chairman Dr. Harsha Cabral PC, Managing Director Mr. S.R. Gnanam, Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy, Mr. A.D.B. Talwatte, Mr. Ravi Dias, Mr. Shuichi Nakamoto, Mr. W.C. Fernando, Mr. Praveen Gnanam, Mrs. A.A. Ludowyke and Mr. Mano Sekaram.

Tokyo Cement Group is the largest manufacturer of high-quality cement, concrete and cement-based innovative products in Sri Lanka. As a truly homegrown blue-chip company that is intrinsic to Sri Lanka’s progress, the Company has pledged to enrich the national economy through local value creation. Having earned its reputation as a trusted corporate at the heart of the transformation of the local construction industry, Tokyo Cement Group has reaffirmed its position as the leading partner in Nation-building.

Filtered Press Release : 2024 Sep

Tokyo Cement partners the Foundation of Goodness for 9th year running

Two Independent Non-Executive Directors appointed to the Tokyo Cement Board

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