Sampath Bank, CBL Group, WSO2 donate PCR lab worth Rs. 32 m to Colombo Army Hospital

From left: Sampath Bank Managing Director Nanda Fernando, CBL Group Chairman Ramya Wickramasingha, and WSO2 Founder and CEO Dr. Sanjiva Weerawarana handing over the cheques to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa

From left: Sampath Bank Managing Director Nanda Fernando, CBL Group Chairman Ramya Wickramasingha, Chief of Defence Staff and Commander of the Army Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva, and Secretary to Ministry of Health and Indigenous Medical Practices Major General Sanjeewa Munasinghe in discussions with representatives from the Army (centre)

Strengthening the nation’s ability to respond to the COVID-19 global pandemic, Sampath Bank PLC, CBL Group and WSO2 jointly donated a fully-equipped PCR laboratory to the Army Hospital in Colombo recently.

Costing around Rs. 32 million, this state-of-the-art lab has a testing capacity of 600 per day, thereby expanding the national capacity to conduct PCR tests. This added capacity will enable health authorities to expand their testing base, identify those infected with the virus, treat them and ensure that community transmission is kept at near-zero levels.

“The health sector, tri-forces, Police and all other essential service personnel led by our Government, have been working tirelessly to protect us during this global pandemic. This has helped Sri Lanka minimise the spread of the virus, despite having limited resources. Thanking them for their service, we are honoured to support their efforts with the donation of this PCR laboratory in partnership with CBL and WSO2. We will continue to empower our fellow Sri Lankans and help the nation emerge stronger from this health and economic crisis,” said Sampath Bank Managing Director Nanda Fernando.

“The CBL Group is honoured to support Sri Lanka’s fight against COVID-19 and we are thankful to our national health authorities and armed forces who continue to lead Sri Lanka’s frontline. This contribution, in collaboration with Sampath Bank and WSO2, will increase the PCR testing capabilities of the Sri Lanka Army to 600 tests per day and will enhance our nation’s efforts to detect and control the spread of this pandemic,” said CBL Group Chairman Ramya Wickramasingha.

“Sri Lanka has done a remarkable job of restricting the spread of COVID-19 in the country and it has been an exemplary demonstration of pandemic control that other countries can emulate. On behalf of WSO2, I’d like to express our gratitude to everyone involved in these containment efforts, particularly the health officials and armed forces who have been at the forefront. We’re pleased to join Sampath Bank and the CBL Group in this endeavour to increase the PCR testing capacity of the Colombo Army Hospital significantly as the authorities continue to test, identify and contain the spread of this pandemic in our country,” said WSO2 Founder and CEO Dr. Sanjiva Weerawarana.