Strengthening its commit- ment to investing in sustainable growth, HNB completed its fourth year of restoring and managing a 2.5-hectare block of degraded rainforest land at the Kanneliya Forest Reserve.
The five-year restoration program implemented by Biodiversity Sri Lanka (BSL), with the technical support of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), functions under the guidance of the Forest Department.
The Bank has been an active contributor to the restoration project, which ensures the establishment of on-site nurseries, fertilizing plants, soil conservation, improving plant protection methods, and ensuring the plants are watered during the dry season.
L Chiranthi Cooray, Head of Sustainability/DGM/CHRO, HNB, shared, “We at HNB are pleased to see the progress made at the Kanneliya Forest Reserve. A land once considered destroyed is now on its way to becoming a replenished source of life, home to multiple species in the country’s ecosystem.
Adding further she said, “Partnering with a project of such significance solidifies HNB’s sustainable develop- ment, not only within the or- ganization but also in the en- vironment it so successfully thrives in. We are grateful to the BSL, the IUCN, and the Forest Department for batting on de- spite the economic uncertainty. Their efforts to sustain the country’s ecological resources must be commended, and HNB looks forward to supporting them through to the end of the project.”
The Kanneliya Dediyagala Nakiyadeniya (KDN) complex is the second-largest block of lowland rainforest in Sri Lanka, following the Sinharaja Forest. The complex was declared a conservation forest in 1995 and is managed by the Forest Department of Sri Lanka, with multiple corporates across the country joining hands to restore the land.
A report highlighting the project’s status found that the land has shown remarkable progress in reforestation due to restoration efforts.
