John Keells Foundation (JKF), the Corporate Social Responsibility entity of the John Keells Group, hosted its annual Volunteer Recognition Day under the patronage of Chairperson of the John Keells Group, to celebrate the remarkable contributions of staff and business teams who dedicated their time, skills, and efforts towards creating positive social impact across Sri Lanka.

Held on 28^th July 2026 at Cinnamon Lakeside Colombo, the event was graceed by the senior leadership of the John Keells Group led by Group Chairperson Krishan Balendra,and served as a platform to recognise and reward volunteer excellence during 2025/26.

Presenting the volunteerism highlights of the year, Carmeline Jayasuriya, Head of Group CSR said, “The past year recorded remarkable growth in volunteerism, with 2,500 volunteers contributing across 4,842 instances and 105,096 hours. In particular, environment-based initiatives, Ditwah relief efforts, and the iconic annual art fair Kala Pola recorded the most number of volunteer engagement during the year, underscoring the widespread impact of our collective service. We are also happy to witness increasingly strategic and purpose-driven volunteerism through the Group businesses, many conducted in partnership with JKF, one of which will be showcased today. This year, as JKF recorded its 21^st anniversary, a key commemorative activity was the development and launch of a customised Volunteer App to digitise the full volunteer process across the Group, which has already gained traction among over 1100 staff including the Group Executive Committee.”

The event saw the inauguration of a special award to recognize strategic and sustainable community development initiatives implemented by Group businesses in partnership with JKF. The John Keells Praja Shakthi Habarana Beekeeper Project team won the inaugural special award, showcasing the initiative, impact and sustained commitment of the project team at Habarana hotel complex in creating shared value. The event also featured a beekeeper - Wasantha Bandara, Community Project Coordinator - sharing his experiences. “I didn’t have a technical background in beekeeping. When the community members first joined the project, we were uncertain of its success. Today, we are grateful for the training and ongoing guidance and mentoring facilitated by the John Keells and Cinnamon teams, which have enabled us to grow and sustain this initiative, enhancing our income potential while also protecting the bees through sustaintable practices”. As a special feature, the pilot consignment of bee honey from the project was launched during the event and made available for pre-market sale, recording good sales.

Krishan Balendra, Chairperson of the John Keells Group, congratulated the awardees and remarked, “We saw 2,500 volunteers in 2025/26 - a big increase in numbers - but more volunteers need to get engaged. What really stands out about the Group is the spirit of volunteerism. At Kala Pola, for instance, it was good to see a sea of blue (corporate) t-shirts in spite of it being an outdoor event on a sweltering Sunday. People could really see the commitment of the John Keells staff. The Group’s contribution to `Rebuilding Sri Lanka’ - with the Group companies together contributing LKR 500 million - was the largest contribution by a Sri Lankan entity. I look forward to tasting the bee honey from the Beekeeping Project in Habarana! Projects like this, along with the various John Keells Praja Shakthi initiatives such as the Hikka Batiks in Hikkaduwa and the Mushroom project in Ja Ela, show us that we should look at more such sustainable CSR  initiatives across the Group. I also encourage our staff to use the volunteer app going forward and enlist for activities as much as possible.”

A highlight of the evening was the recognition of volunteers who demonstrated exceptional commitment throughout the year. Gold and Silver certificates were presented to volunteers who recorded outstanding contribution in volunteer time and impact. The event also honoured Sooriya Bandara Herath, Property and Real Estate Engineer at the Victoria Golf Resort, for his sustained commitment and valuable contribution to the Model Pre-School project undertaken by JKF within John Keells Praja Shakthi – Nithulemada amidst a series of disasters affecting Sri Lanka and was vested in the Medadumbara Pradeshiya Saha in December 2025.

In addition to recognising individual and team achievements, Volunteer Recognition Day 2026 celebrated the collective contribution of the John Keells Group's volunteer network supporting JKF’s multiple activities undertaken in 2025/26.

Education, Community & Livelihoods, Social Health & Cohesion, and Biodiversity are the four focus areas of John Keells Foundation - the CSR entity of John Keells Holdings PLC (JKH), the largest conglomerate listed on the CSE in terms of market capitalization operating over 80 companies in 7 diverse industry sectors. With a history of over 150 years, the John Keells Group provides employment to over 18,000 persons and has been ranked as Sri Lanka's 'Most Respected Entity' for the last 20 Years by LMD magazine. It has also been recognised as Sri Lanka's Most Loved Corporate Brand in the LMD Readers' Choice Awards for three consecutive years. Whilst being a full member of the World Economic Forum and a participant of the UN Global Compact, JKH drives its CSR vision of `Empowering the Nation for Tomorrow’ through John Keells Foundation and through the social entrepreneurship initiative, ‘Plasticcycle’, which is a catalyst in significantly reducing plastic pollution in Sri Lanka.