Ms N.Chandraleka from Nanoya, near Hatton, is currently working for a Sri Lankan insurance company. It was the skills she acquired at a training course conducted at Sewalanka's computer training centre, which provided her with the confidence to secure the highly sought after position.

Ms Chandraleka is one of 81 students from local plantation communities who have completed computer courses at the Communication Centre in Dickoya in the Hatton region of the Hill Country. The first group of these students recently graduated at an inaugural ceremony, where they were recognised with certificates of completion.

In a speech to graduates who attended the event, District Director Mrs S. Sivapackiyam said it was extremely inspiring to see so many individuals completing courses at the centre.

"The skills you have developed will increase your employment opportunities, this is demonstrated by the outstanding employment rate of our graduates. Of the 81 students who have completed computer training courses, 38 have already been successful in securing jobs," she said.

"Our communication centre and computer training courses were created to promote the importance of technology in today's society.

"Established in 2004 as the only facility of its type in the area, the communication centre was developed to give the area's youth the opportunity to develop their computer skills through training sessions. It was also established to provide telephone, email, photocopy, print, cd writing and fax facilities to the local community."

Funded by the Information and Communication Technology Agency of Sri Lanka (ICTA), the centre has become an invaluable facility for the local community and is growing rapidly. Judging by the success of Ms Chandraleka and her fellow graduates, places in the IT courses may soon be hard to come by.