Business
Fadna uplifts the pharmaceutical industry with Grow Beyond
Fadna, a pioneer in the Sri Lankan functional food industry, recently launched an online discussion forum as part of their Grow Beyond initiative with the objective of uplifting the pharmaceutical industry by improving overall service to the community. Held recently , coinciding with World Pharmacist Day, this online discussion was conducted via Zoom and targeted private pharmacy owners across the island.
Many businesses have experienced a huge threat to profits as well as maintaining business standards in the recent past. Understanding the dramatic shift in the pharma landscape, in local and global contexts, this educational online discussion forum was initiated by Fadna to uplift the pharmaceutical industry via a knowledge sharing platform for providing a better service to the community.
Additionally, the importance of working with professionally trained staff and emphasizing the significance of thorough education was a key focus of the forum, and explained the direct correlation between providing better service to create opportunities within the parameters of the ongoing pandemic. Further insights were shared regarding the current trends within the healthcare industry and how to maximize profits, overcoming challenges in the industry.
With the objective of inculcating a more positive attitude through education and providing expert information on business growth during the current worldwide crisis, Fadna sought to initiate this project and bring the pharmaceutical industry to the next level. Moderated by Dimuthu Ruwan Piyasena, the esteemed panel of some of the most distinguished business and pharma professionals in the industry included Deepal Sooriyarachchi, Chandana Gunawardene, Kelum Jayasooriya and Ruwan Raigamkorala. This initiative was carried out in partnership with the All Island Private Pharmacy Owners Association (AIPPOA).
Grow Beyond was introduced by Fadna to facilitate engagement, enhance motivation and thus uplift the pharmaceutical industry. Chamendra Somathunga, Managing Director of Fadna, emphasized, “As one of the trailblazing organizations within the herbal tea industry of Sri Lanka, we felt it was paramount that we find ways in which to inspire positivity. Given the fluctuations and overall disheartened demeanour of most individuals and organizations due to the onset of the pandemic, we believe that this was a much-needed ‘pick-me-up’ to inspire business growth and development. Considering the series of requests, follow-ups and generally positive feedback received post-discussion, we hope to organize more discussion forums in the future.”
Fadna is a renowned household brand in the Functional Food Category of Sri Lanka. Through their constant research and innovation in collaboration with several universities, they have revitalized the tea industry of Sri Lanka and provided superior quality and efficacy through their products, making waves as an internationally recognized brand. With more online discussion forums on the horizon, Grow Beyond is an ideal initiative by Fadna to carry the torch, elevating the pharmaceutical industry to provide excellent service to the community and the country as a whole.
Ceylinco Life’s Ambalantota branch agent AIP Manjula has been named one of three global finalists for the prestigious Insurance Agent of the Year award at the 11th Asia Trusted Life Agents & Advisers Awards (ATLAA) 2026.
The recognition places a Sri Lankan insurance professional among the finalists in a regional field spanning South Asia, Southeast Asia, East Asia and the wider Asia-Pacific region.
Ceylinco Life said the achievement reflected the calibre and customer-focused approach of its agency force, while recognising Manjula’s professionalism and commitment to policyholders.
The award evaluates insurance agents on criteria extending beyond sales performance, including ethical conduct, client service, policy persistency, digital adoption, innovative practices and contributions to the insurance industry and community.
The awards are organised by Asia Advisers Network and Asia Insurance Review, with LIMRA as co-organiser. An independent judging and balloting process is monitored by KPMG as the official scrutineer. The judging panel comprises senior insurance executives, association presidents and industry experts from across the Asia-Pacific region.
CEAT Kelani Holdings (CKH) has retained its National Long-Term Rating of ‘AA+(lka)’ with a Stable Outlook from Fitch Ratings for the sixth consecutive year, reflecting the company’s financial resilience and leading position in Sri Lanka’s pneumatic tyre market.
The ‘AA+(lka)’ rating, the second-highest on Fitch’s national scale, indicates a very strong capacity to meet financial commitments.
Fitch said CKH’s established market leadership and resilient financial profile remained key strengths, while noting its exposure to price-sensitive, cyclical and highly competitive markets.
The Stable Outlook reflects expectations that the company will maintain its market position despite rising input costs and increasing competition from imported tyres, while preserving adequate credit metrics during periods of weaker earnings and higher investment.
Fitch expects CKH’s established brand, extensive dealer network and adaptive pricing strategies to support its market position. Planned production facility upgrades are also expected to improve product quality, particularly in the radial tyre segment.
The rating agency expects near-term pressure on margins from higher raw material and energy costs but said the company’s low leverage and sound liquidity would provide a cushion.
CKH Chairman Chanaka De Silva said the rating reinforced the company’s focus on disciplined financial management, operational adaptability and long-term investment.
SLT-MOBITEL Enterprise, the enterprise services arm of Sri Lanka Telecom PLC, has launched its Premium Cloud service powered by Nutanix, aimed at helping Sri Lankan businesses modernise their IT infrastructure and accelerate digital transformation.
The service was unveiled at the Lanka Tech Summit 2026 held recently at ITC Ratnadipa, Colombo.
The Premium Cloud combines hybrid multi-cloud capabilities with enterprise-grade performance, enabling businesses to run mission-critical workloads, scale cloud deployments and strengthen business continuity through disaster recovery capabilities.
Hosted on SLT-MOBITEL’s Tier III data centre infrastructure, the platform is designed to provide enhanced security, reliability and flexibility while supporting the growing technology requirements of enterprises.
SLT-MOBITEL Enterprise said the platform would also support organisations seeking to adopt AI-ready capabilities and improve the management and performance of IT workloads.
A key feature of the launch was SLT-MOBITEL Enterprise joining the Nutanix Elevate Service Provider Program (NESPP), which the company said made it the first service provider in the region to join the programme.
Powered by Nutanix’s hybrid multicloud platform, the service enables application and data mobility across on-premises environments, public clouds and edge locations.
The company said the partnership combined Nutanix’s cloud technology with SLT-MOBITEL’s local expertise and support, strengthening its multi-cloud portfolio.
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