E-pitching event among micro-scale women entrepreneurs
On February 18, 2023, NORO Solutions, Sri Lanka, conducted an e-pitching with young Sri Lankan entrepreneurs in which The Gate Foundation partnered.
The mission of this event was to encourage micro-scale women entrepreneurs who hail from rural backgrounds to plan and scale their business ideas.
A total of 10 people participated in this event. Cash prices were provided to the first four winners. 1st winner: LKR 60,000; 2nd winner: LKR 40,000; 3rd winner: LKR 30,000; and 4th winner: LKR 20,000. The prize money for the winners was sponsored by comdu.it, based in Canada and Germany.
The details of the winners are as follows:
Arulpriaya Kirekaran- Arulpriya won the first prize. She had presented a proposal to produce animal food from food waste. She is a Sociology student at Jaffna University. She aspires to be a social entrepreneur in the Northern Province.
Kalpana Poobalaratnam- Kalpana won the second prize. She had proposed an idea to provide a unique cooking service through extra-hygienic products. She specialises in producing organic and herbal chilly powder.
Kenuka Karunakaran bagged the third prize. She is pursuing an IT degree at the University of Moratuwa. She is passionate about design and photography. Through her start-up, FRAMEio, she delivers creative frames as a memory of a lifetime. As a solopreneur, she has plans to expand her business by employing teams in the future.
Sathya won the fourth prize. She is involved in promoting various Palmyra products and exporting them on a microscale. She plans to open a factory to promote Palmyra products.
The following served as judges for this event:
Mr. Thakson Sothinathan- Junior Engagement Manager @ McKinsey & Company, and Start-up Coach
Mr. Prathap Francis- Scrum Master & Agile Coach Nexble GmbH.
Mr. Saranga Thiruketheeswaran- Member of Comdu.it and student at Maastricht University, specialising in Strategy and innovation, Information Management, and Business Intelligence.
Ms. Gowshiga Gowreeswaran- Expert Supply Chain Design @ Gebhardt Group.
Ms. Delakshana Manoharan- Entrepreneur & Founder of Shades IT Solutions.
The Gate Foundation is looking to increase the frequency of e-pitching events with a broader focus span to replicate in other areas and regions with multiple partners.
