Facebook partners ICTA to empower SMEs in Sri Lanka with digital toolkit

Continuing with its recently-announced partnership with the Information and Communication Technology Agency (ICTA) of Sri Lanka to train local entrepreneurs in digital marketing skills, Facebook is bringing its globally renowned ‘Boost Your Business’ workshop to the Southern region of Sri Lanka. ‘Boost Your Business’ is part of ICTA’s ‘Digitising of the Southern Province of Sri Lanka’ program, with Matara hosting the inaugural workshop for the region.

The event took place in Matara on 19 June and was organised with the support of regional level stakeholders, led by World University Service of Canada (WUSC). The ‘Boost Your Business’ workshop was attended by more than 200 local entrepreneurs, which included the participation of 60+ female entrepreneurs and 15 differently-abled business owners from Galle, Matara and Hambantota districts, on the effective use of digital tools to grow and monetise their businesses online. The sessions further helped enterprises understand the advantages of digital media, and guided them on how digital marketing tools can help leverage the mobile economy to gain market access and grow their businesses. The workshop, conducted in Sinhalese, also saw the presence of nearly 40 students from local vocational training schools. 

Commenting on the initiative, ICTA Chairman Dr. Rohan Samarajiva said, “This initiative progresses our goal to create a digitally inclusive and vibrant economy. With Facebook’s tools and expertise in digital marketing, we hope entrepreneurs will be able to fuel their next growth story.”

Elaborating on the program, Facebook Public Policy Director (India, South & Central Asia) Ankhi Das said, “We partnered with the ICTA earlier in the year, to build on our promise to train 10,000 Sri Lankan entrepreneurs and help them access the global economy. The Southern region of Sri Lanka is a hub of economic activity, and we believe we can give local entrepreneurs a much-needed boost to their businesses. With this initiative, we are well on our way to positively impacting Sri Lankan entrepreneurs and becoming a net contributor to the nation’s economy.” 

There are more than 60 million businesses around the world who actively use Facebook Pages, because they are free, easy to use, and they work well on mobile. Small businesses discover Facebook for their business because they know how to use it personally: setting up a Page is just as easy as setting up a profile. And Facebook is where their customers already are.