HNB sets up savings unit, information technology centre at Visakha Nursery School

Hatton National Bank Plc (HNB) recently donated 15 specially designed XO computers to the children of Visakha Nursery School, Colombo. The project was the second in this category by HNB, the first being the donation of 100 XO computers to the children of Weihena Primary School in Galle.

This project comes under the overall HNB CSR umbrella of better education for sustainable living and the HNB Nena Pubuduwa school library and computer centre project. Launched in 2005 the Bank has donated 169 libraries and 11 computer centres to underprivileged schools creating a difference in the lives of over 40,000 children every year.

The Visakha Nursery School established in 1959 functions as a non-profit initiative and caters to the learning needs of approximately 300 children from the ages of 2 ½ to 6 years every year.

It facilitates learning in the English medium for children from multi ethnic and social backgrounds. Recognising the importance of computer literacy at an early age and its benefits in the development of children, the school wished to set up a separate computer centre and had approached the Hatton National Bank for assistance.

Having worked with the OLPC Foundation in the past HNB was quick to note the similarity in the requirements at Visakha Nursery and purchased the XO machines to be donated. The XO computers are specially designed to suit the needs of very young children. These computers have been imported by the OLPC Foundation under the “one laptop per child” initiative and have been recommended by the Ministry of Education to aid early childhood development.

In a bid to introduce the savings habit at an early age the Bank invited all the parents to open savings accounts for their children under the HNB Singithi Lama minor savings scheme. The Bank deposited sum of Rs. 1000 each to all Singithi Lama accounts opened on this day with an initial deposit of Rs. 2,000 and also gifted an HNB Singithi jumbo till to the children.