Opening of the Youth Wellness Center, Faculty of Arts

The opening of the Youth Wellness Center (YWC), Faculty of Arts, University of Colombo, was held on April 3, 2023, at 9.00 a.m. at the Faculty premises, in the presence of the Vice Chancellor, Senior Professor (Chair) H.D. Karunaratne, Dean, Faculty of Arts; Senior Professor Lasantha Manawadu, Dean, Faculty of Medicine; Professor Vidya Jyothi Vajira H.W. Dissanayake, Registrar, University of Colombo Mr. K.A.S. Edward, and the Faculty members of the University and the Faculty of Arts.

The opening of the Youth Wellness Center (YWC) was graced by distinguished invitees, including the Country Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Mr. Kunle Adeniyi; Dr. Vinya S. Ariyaratne, Honorary President of the Sarvodaya Shramadana Movement; Ms. Shanthi Bhagirathan, Group Director of the Capital Maharaja Group; those organisations partnered with the Youth Wellness Center.

The YWC was established for the purpose of providing a comprehensive package of services in nutritional health, psychosocial counseling, sexual and reproductive health, referrals for prevention and response to gender violence, food security, and any other areas related to wellness and the continuation of quality education (see the Youth Wellness Center Webpage: https://arts.cmb.ac.lk/ywc/).

At today’s opening ceremony, the Center announced the official launch of the webpage and the Suwatha Sanitary Programme which partnered with the Capital Majaraja Group on providing sanitary napkins at a discounted rate and promoting hygiene wellness and awareness among the undergraduates. The Youth Wellness Center tour was guided by the Youth Wellness Society members, and a briefing on the functions of the medical equipment was conducted by Dr. Lahiru Kodithuwakku and Ms. Sasanka Dharmasena whereas, the briefing for physical wellness was conducted by Dr. Samantha Nanayakkara.

The Youth Wellness Centre operates under an Executive Committee consists of the Director, Mr. Dhamma Dissanayake, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Political Science and Public Policy and Coordinator, Dr. Menik Wakkumbura at the Department of International Relations, Activity Coordinator, Dr. Darshi Thoradeniya at the Department of History and the Steering Committee chaired by the Dean, Faculty of Arts.