We salute the outstanding contribution by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) UK, in establishing the Foundation of Goodness’ flagship project headquarters, the MCC Centre of Excellence in Seeniga ma (20 0 7 — 2 0 2 0) and the Sri Sumangala College Lords Cricket Grounds in Hikkaduwa (Est. 2007) declared open by the 2008 incoming MCC President, former England Cricket Captain Mike Brearley.

The MCC, as of March 2021, has remained the largest donor organization with a contribution of LKR 141,962,193/- towards rural empowerment and sports development which we applaud hugely.

The MCC Centre of Excellence was declared open thanks to the compassionate response of the Ma rylebone Cricket Club towards the plight of villagers in the Seeniga ma region (serving 140 villages) affected by the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami. We are truly grateful for this incredible relationship, enabling us to take great strides towards the development of rural Sri Lanka in setting up and bench ma rking a one-of-a-kind holistic rural development model now with miniature versions established island-wide, creating opportunities, building skills and increasing the confidence of rural communities in elevating their standards and bridging the urban/ rural divide to make better progress.
The MCC also helped establish the Sri Sumangala College Lords Cricket Grounds complete with indoor practice nets incorporated in to a pavilion with many other facilities in nearby Hikkaduwa which gives young people from rural backgrounds the exposure of playing with international school and club teams to upgrade their cricketing abilities, leading to representation at national and international levels.

The MCC continues to maintain a wonderfully supportive relationship with the Foundation of Goodness and sponsors up-and-coming cricketers every year with a sports scholarship aimed at producing national level players from a rural background, which has produced a number of U19 World Cup and National cricketers.

We are grateful to the MCC Presidents, CEOs and Members who have visited this Centre as well as the MCC Board of Local Trustees for their staunch support towards our humanitarian and empowerment activities over the years with their unwavering commitment.