The Thambuththegama branch office of SEEDS (GTE) Limited, the second such branch opened in Anuradhapura District was ceremoniously declared open at Rajina Junction, Thambuththegama by the Managing Director of SEEDS, Shakila Wijewardena on 15 May 2009. The ground work for this opening was accomplished by the Senior Regional Manager for North Central and Uva of SEEDS, Mr.H.A.S. Dharmasiri, the SEEDS District Manager of Anuradhapura, Mr.K.Karunarathna, the elders and people of the area.

The villages Thambuththegama, Rajanganayala and Nochiyagamala are situated between the giant irrigation tanks Kalawewa and Rajanganaya and 122 Grama Niladhari Divisions are located in this area in which 242,218 people are registered. Most of these people depend on agriculture for their livelihood while some people are successfully involved in small and medium scale businesses. The villagers are severely inconvenienced because they have no avenues of obtaining financial assistance and loans to develop their businesses. The institutions that have been set up to develop capacity of businesses of the area have found it difficult to coordinate their activities and therefore have made life difficult for people living in the area.

(Seated from left: Branch Office Manager –Kekirawa, Senior Regional Manager – North Central and Uva, Managing Director of SEEDS, District Manager Anuradhapura and the Manager of the Thambuththegama Branch. Staff of the branch in the background.)

The opening of the SEEDS office in Thambuththegama is expected to solve many acute problems faced by the villagers of the area. SEEDS, which works in coordination with a string of societies, is ideally positioned at present to cater to the needs of the people of Thambuththegama.

Already, SEEDS has economically empowered 65 Sarvodaya Shramadana Societies in Thambuththegama, where it provides services to people living in 85 Grama Niladhari Divisions. Presently, savings of the societies in the area around the Thambuththegama branch amount to Rs.59,812,007/-, whilst the amount these societies have invested in the district office amount to Rs.31,604,194/-. The outstanding loan balance of the Thambuththegama branch stands at Rs.32,217,560/- with the Portfolio at Risk (PAR < 30 days) being zero is a significant achievement. On the day the branch was opened, the societies in the area deposited Rs.4,000,000/-, which indicates the extent of the work done by Sarvodaya in inculcating the savings habit among the people and the determination and the commitment of the people to save for the development of their community.

It should be noted that the Anuradhapura District loan outstanding balance of SEEDS amounts to Rs.213,000,000/- with the PAR standing at 4%, which measures up to international standards. The intension of SEEDS is to plan and expedite the economic development in the Anuradhapura area through this new branch office located at Thambuththegama.