HIP team after the beach cleanup

HIP team with the inmates of the Sarana Blind Elders Home

As the year came to a close, Hambantota International Port’s (HIP) corporate social initiative shifted their focus on macro issues to look at their immediate neighbourhood. Two initiatives were put in place that coordinates the port’s sustainability projects. 

HIP co-sponsored and participated in a beach clean up close to the port. This sustainability initiative was part of a larger programme by the Marine Environment Protection Authority - Sri Lanka (MEPA), in line with the concept of “Sayura Surakina Ralla,” and was conducted within the Hambantota District under the mentorship of the State Ministry of Coast Conservation & Low-Lying Lands Development.  Around 7,500 kilograms of waste was removed from the beach in the district and had nearly a thousand people participating.

The port also gave dry rations and other essential items to the ‘Sarana Blind Elders Home’ that provides shelter to 28 visually impaired inmates who were in need.  

In a statement to the media HIP said this year it will focus on macro projects like the human-elephant conflict and partnering state agencies to actively engage in sustainable solutions such as the ‘Hope Village’ project to assist villagers develop their livelihoods under a cooperative model and helping to develop the region’s healthcare facilities for example funding the Hambantota district’s PCR testing laboratory.  

“We also feel it is our responsibility to look at other prevalent issues of social concern like cleaning the beaches to reduce environmental and marine pollution around us and helping the community in need.,” HIP said Human Resources and Administration Department Senior General Manager Jeevan Premasara.

He shared that the effort is part of a systemic approach towards sustainable engagement with the natural and social environment around us in both macro and 
micro levels.