Sri Lanka’s largest cement producer, INSEE Cement, has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), according to The Colombo Post. The agreement will extend their long-standing partnership to continue INSEE’s  biodiversity projects for a further three years, from 2022 to 2025. The MoU was signed by Nandana Ekanayake, chairman and CEO of INSEE Cement, and Anshuman Saikia, coordinator of regional portfolio management and officer in charge of IUCN’s Sri Lanka country office.

“By entering into this MoU, INSEE Cement continues to demonstrate our strong commitment to biodiversity management and conservation in Sri Lanka,” commented Rohan Lakmal, environment and CSR manager at INSEE Cement. “Biodiversity is one of the fundamental pillars of INSEE’s Sustainability Ambition 2030. Our partnership with IUCN enables INSEE Cement to meet our own ambitious sustainability targets while also creating more awareness on the general decline in Sri Lanka's biodiversity, and the urgency to do our part to conserve our natural habitats.”

The partnership with IUCN for quarry rehabilitation reportedly extends as far back as 2007, and has been renewed every three years with measurable results. Projects include field surveys, monitoring and recommendations for restored quarry sites, wildlife rescue and release activities, and baseline assessments of Koggala and Aruwakkalu mangrove restoration sites as well as the artificial coral reefs at Unawatuna.