On invitation of Dr. Vinya Ariyaratne, Secretary General of the Sarvodaya Shramadana Movement (SSM), Emeritus Prof. Ranjith Senaratne, Chairman and Dr. Dilrukshi Ranatunga, Head, Science Popularization Division of NSF visited the SSM head office on 19 Feb 2021 with a view to expanding its the outreach through constructive engagement with SSM. The visit coincided with the monthly meeting of the Sarvodaya district leaders which afforded the NSF a valuable opportunity to interact with district leaders.
Dr. Ariyarathe made introductory remarks on the scope, goals and objectives of the SSM and invited Prof. Senaratne to address the meeting which resulted in active deliberation on prospective areas for cooperation and collaboration. It was decided to sign an MoU between the two institutions to institutionalize cooperation for community development. Initially, a suitable village from the North, East and South of the country will be selected and the NSF and SSM will work in concert with a university in the respective regions for community development through S&T with special focus on women.. This will afford a new direction, dimension and momentum to the outreach activities of NSF.
Dr.Vinya Ariyaratne made a reciprocal visit to the NSF on 01. March 2021 to discuss the draft MoU which is due to be signed in late March 2021.