Delivering Value

External Capital Formation

The value created by CDB for stakeholders through activities, relationships and linkages lead to the formation of capital external to CDB. They reside within our stakeholders, but CDB has access to and makes use of these and its own internal capital in driving its business. Our discussion will now focus on CDB’s external capital formation, the material ones being, investor capital, customer capital, business partner capital, employee capital, Governmental and Regulatory Authorities capital and social & environmental capital.

Investor Capital

In order to meet the needs of our investors, the economic performance of the CDB needs to be sustainable in the long run. Our performance is driven by integrative management and active oversight. Prudent financial transactions, pragmatic environmental spending and measuring the impact of our social programmes ensure value is derived and the benefits are targeted to the intended stakeholders.

Our Investors are committed to ensuring that CDB remains a sustainable business concern that posts consistent results, is a respected employer and a socially responsible corporate steward. They take pride in our accolades and are proactive in our decision making and we in turn, recognise the crucial role our investors play in maintaining CDB on an even keel, to build and strengthen a sustainable business model that will truly bring pride to our investors.

Our strategic priorities and commitment towards shareholders show the means and ways of enhancing returns on investment. During the year, we achieved an EPS of Rs. 10.33 and proposed a dividend of Rs. 3.00 per share. Excellence in both financial and non-financial performance has helped us win several awards and accolades. Our financial stability has been acknowledged by rating agencies such as RAM Ratings Lanka when they reaffirmed our long and short term ratings at BBB and P2 with a stable outlook. We communicate our business performance and achievements efficiently and effectively. We frequently conduct investor forums, courier interim financial statements and distribute annual reports to notify our past and current performance.

Future Aspects

While we will continue to enhance our financial performance and value creation, we will further streamline the process of communication with the investors with a view to enhance the level of engagement with them. We will endeavour for more and more recognition at prestige awards ceremonies in future by being among the best in the industry. We will continue our efforts to strengthen the financial stability of the Company which may help us to get our credit ratings upgraded.

Key Performance Indicators	2013/14	2012/13
EPS Achieved (Rs.)	10.33	9.01
NAV Per Share (Rs.)	65.87	54.60
Dividend Per Share (Rs.)	3.00	2.75
Credit Rating (Lanka Rating Agency Limited)	BBB/P2	BBB/P2

Macro challenges and trends undoubtedly impact investor outlook and for CDB it is no different. However, investors also look for past records and consistency in decision-making, policy and stability. This has proved to be the panacea to CDB retaining investor confidence despite battling macro challenges that did impact investor returns this year. While keeping an eye on the macro vista, oncoming trends and ensuing challenges, CDB is very conscious of retaining that investor confidence and thereby ensuring expected future returns, implementing the rudiments imperative to do so. We remain very committed to building on our financial stability; consistent performance and sustainable foundations to further strengthen the investor confidence that we have thus far enjoyed.

Customer Capital

Our goal is to provide customer service that is not just the best but legendary. It’s our every day job to make every aspect of the customer experience a little better because we know a satisfied customer is the best business strategy of all.

CDB offers a vast variety of products and services to its customers while being responsible for what is delivered. We run through defined principles that guide our marketing communications with customers. We are committed to building trust through responsible practices and through transparent transactions and communication. We consider it is our responsibility to ensure the security of our products and any risks that are associated with them.

We will use a combination of channels, which includes product taglines, websites and consumer leaflets to communicate openly with our consumers. Our marketing division is committed to responsible marketing and advertising. It helps informing people about the benefits of our products and services while being a way of engaging with customers. We go as per the stipulated Code of Conduct of preserving customer privacy and aligning with compliance in all marketing and advertising baseline ensuring legal, integrity and decency aspects.

“Committed as a trustworthy entity through responsible marketing practices which ensures customer confidentiality as per the Code of Conduct”

Key Performance Indicators	2013/14	2012/13
	Nos.	Nos.
Outlets opened	15	8
Branches relocated	2	7
Customer complaints received	84	54
Customer inquiries	384	236
Customer surveys carried out	0	1
New products introduced	4	5
T&D programmes on customer service	5	4

Product Portfolio

Product Category	Brand		Description
Fixed Deposits	CDB Dhana Surekum		Customer aspirations in life means a lot to us, that’s why we at CDB introduced ‘Dhana Surekum’ Fixed Deposits to bring our customers one step closer to realising their dreams.
	CDB Aee		CDB introduced ‘CDB Aee’ focusing on the female community. When they open an ‘Aee’ Fixed Deposit, they will receive free gift vouchers for Gold Jewellery or a Valuable Health Insurance Policy.
	CDB Dheegayu		‘Deeghayu’ Fixed Deposits focus on the senior citizens of the country with 1% additional interest and many more benefits.
Savings	CDB Real Savings		‘CDB Real Savings’ offers customers a modest interest rate on every savings deposit.
	CDB Rankati		CDB ‘Rankati’ is a minor savings account which ensures a flourishing future for children offering an amazing array of gifts and benefits through different savings plans to suit your needs.
	Mudharabha		A savings product which is designed to meet the growing demand for Sharia-compliant financing.
Lending - Top level	CDB Hybrid Lease/permit-holders		A specialised leasing covering for luxury vehicles.
Lending - Middle level	Small Car Lease		CDB Small car leasing is a brand which facilitates in lending for small cars which are below 1000cc.
Lending - Micro level	CDB 3W Raja Selakili		This brand will focus on attracting three-wheelers.
	CDB Diesel Mini Truck Lease		These two brands will focus on providing lending to small truck segment.
	CDB Diesel Batta Lease
Lending - Other	CDB Gold Loan		CDB ‘Ran Nidahasa’ is the brand which focuses on conducting pawning facility at CDB.
	CDB Meezan		Designed to meet the growing demand for Sharia compliant financing.
	CDB Hire purchase facility for registered vehicles		Hire purchase category deals with providing lending to registered vehicles.
	CDB Privilege		Recently introduced personal loan scheme.
Other	CDB Money Exchange		CDB Money Exchange facilitates customers in exchanging accepted foreign currency into Sri Lankan Rupees.
	MoneyGram		In partnership with MoneyGram International, a leading global payments services company operating money transfer services worldwide as well as bill payment services in the US through a global network of more than 203,000 agent locations, CDB is a sub-agent for Hatton National Bank.

Products Launched in 2013

Personal Loans

Our personal loan scheme is designed to help customers meet the practical demands of life effectively. Loans are offered at very competitive rates and the application process is simple and convenient. Loans are available for a variety of purposes. Credit maxima are flexible and depend on the customer’s needs, disposable income, repayment capacity and requirements. Personal-loan customers are mainly professionals, industry experts and executives who require credit facilities with minimal paperwork and convenient repayment schedules.

CDB Diriliya

Launched in 2013, the Diriliya product provides modest amounts of credit to women from low-income families and remote districts who are not well-served by traditional banking. It is an example of our urban funding/rural lending policy in action.

It is known that in this socio-economic category, women are better credit risks than men. A product like Diriliya also contributes to female empowerment.

In 2013/14, there were a total of 220 Diriliya dealer points comprising 190 branch outlets and 40 Area Development Officers’ units. Our ADOs’ task is to provide financial services in hitherto unserved areas of the country; they are among the path breakers of financial inclusion in Sri Lanka today.

Mudharabah Savings

Launched in the year under review by the CDB Meezan Islamic Finance Unit, the Mudharabah savings product is designed to meet the growing demand for Sharia-compliant financing. Mudharabah was introduced under the supervision of the CDB Meezan Sharia Board, consisting of eminent scholars and practitioners of Islamic finance. Customers deposit their money as investors in CDB, which will share the return on a monthly basis. This is a very new product, just beginning to establish itself in the market.

Value Promise to Value Fulfilment - Our Brand Value

We recognise that value is what customers need most. - A quality product, at an affordable price, fit for the needs of their requirements. This is always a guiding parameter in all that we do, to make sure that the cost of the solution is in keeping with the value it will add. We endeavour to find win-win options for ourselves and our stakeholders so that there is an appropriate value stream for all of them.

We are proud of our brand. It comprises our promise and delivery ensuring that we create a competitive advantage offered a greater value from the norms and best practices prevalent in the marketplace. Our brand promises here are be evidence for the essence of who we are. It is about sticking by our stakeholders and always trying to do the right thing. While retaining the core values we strive to promote a culture that prompts our team to truly espouse the values augmented by a communication process that involves regular meeting, feedback and surveys to ensure that all remain on the same path to make this journey ahead.

Marketing and Communications

All our products are supported by appropriate and effective advertising and marketing. In devising our communications and marketing activities, we make use of ethical market research methods to ensure that they are as effective as possible.

In terms of the integrity of our communications, we are guided by a commitment to go beyond mere obedience to the appropriate standards and regulations in order to produce expressions that are not only legal but also decent, fair and truthful. Our communications are in compliance with all relevant laws, standards and codes, including those specifically required of finance companies by the Central Bank.

CDB does not promote or offer products that are banned in other markets (even if they are legal in our own) or which are designed to exploit public controversy or friction.

No incidents of non-compliance with relevant regulations and voluntary codes were recorded in the year under review, and no penalties were levied on CDB for non-compliance with any law or regulation concerning the provision and use of products and services.

Branch Network

Success can have its problems. Growing customer numbers at CDB outlets put pressure on service time and quality in 2013. Together with our planned expansion programme, a recently-revised service-process regime is helping to ameliorate this. Under the new process, customers can make instant withdrawals from any CDB outlet, have access to toll-free hotlines for payments and remittances, enjoy convenient VISA debit-card facilities with mobile alerts and SMS services, etc. The adoption of paperless transaction procedures simplifies and speeds up service delivery without compromising security and control. Most important of all, the introduction of officers charged with subject-specific responsibility makes it possible for customers to obtain management decisions on the spot without waiting for head office clearance in many cases and situations.

Branch Locations

District	Outlets Nos.	District	Outlets Nos.
Anuradhapura	1	Kegalle	2
Badulla	1	Kurunegala	3
Batticaloa	1	Matale	2
Colombo	10	Matara	1
Galle	2	Polonnaruwa	1
Gampaha	8	Puttalam	3
Hambantota	1	Ratnapura	4
Jaffna	1	Trincomalee	1
Kalutara	2	Vavuniya	1
Kandy	2

Service Centre Locations

Colombo	6
Gampaha	4
Kalutara	2

ATM Network

Head Office
Premier Centre
Mahara
Wattala

In the year under review, a total of 15 branches and three ATM outlets were added to the network.

Our Premier Centre in Colombo 07 will reveal individuals the opportunity to experience world-class service. It has been a phenomenal success and brought to the cutting-edge in the finance industry for our valuable customers.

Among the new outlets opened this year was the new CDB Premier Centre in Colombo. This centre, specially designed to cater to busy high-net-worth customers, has been a great success, with several requests received for similar centres to be set up in regional centres as well as in the suburbs of Colombo.

Call Centre

The CDB Call Centre is involved in customer care and the handing of complaints. All complaints are taken seriously and investigated as quickly as is feasible. During business hours, trained customer-care officers quickly respond to queries about accounts, financial products, rates, etc., providing fast and effective solutions whenever possible.

Call Centre Activity

Call Centre Traffic

Year	Total Volume Nos.	Average Monthly Nos.
2009/10	58,590	4,883
2010/11	80,746	6,729
2011/12	104,135	8,678
2012/13	160,985	10,989
2013/14	189,616	15,801

As the above table shows, call-centre traffic has increased dramatically during the period the facility has been active. In response, we have increased the number of call-centre staff by additional eight man hours per day. The extension of call-centre operating hours from 7.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m. has also helped us deal with this increase.

Other aspects of customer-relationship management were also improved this year. Highlights included the introduction of a consolidated account-viewing function for customers who hold more than one account or facility with us and a common centre to deal with all queries, complaints and sales leads.

Complaint Handling

Customer complaints are handled systematically to ensure that each is addressed in a satisfactory way. Complaints are, where possible, dealt with by our call-centre staff whether they are received by telephone or through our web site. Where staff cannot deal with complaints satisfactorily, they are escalated to CDB’s Customer Care Manager.

Once received and logged, each complaint is dealt with systematically and a detailed response made to the customer within five working days.

Complaints and Inquiries to Call Centre

Year	2013/14	2012/13
	Nos.	Nos.
Complaints	84	54
Rental-related inquiries	384	192

Protecting Customers’ Privacy

An important condition of customers’ dealings with us is privacy. CDB maintains and ensures total client confidentiality. A dedicated team works to reinforce data protection and confidentiality and to prevent any instance of unsolicited communication or intrusive surveillance. No substantiated complaints regarding breaches of customer privacy or loss of data were received in the year under review.

The Future of Customer Engagement

Formerly, financial institutions built customers’ trust by projecting stability and solidity; in effect, by promising to stay the same forever. This is no longer enough. Customers want stability and flexibility. Success in our business has less to do with understanding money than with understanding people.

Customer service is a discipline that never stops evolving. Given below are some thoughts on the different areas and directions in which our service offering is likely to evolve in the near future.

Financial Solutions

Our goal is to become Sri Lankans’ preferred total financial services provider, attracting customers by building a portfolio of relevant, exciting products. Financial solutions are likely to grow more customised, tailored to suit the needs of a particular user.

In the near term, we will focus on promoting the CDB VISA debit card, growing our deposit base and enhancing the value of products. This applies not only to our primary savings products but also to the Islamic finance products now entering the market.

Distribution Approach

With effective strategic marketing and communications as well as an expanding island-wide distribution network, CDB is well placed to occupy a position at the top of the NBFI pyramid. We aim to attain this goal through investment in network expansion, state-of-the-art IT and best-of-industry products and marketing strategies; also, by delivering value for money to our customers.

We will expand our distribution network into strategic locations using all available channels and leveraging technology to the full. In particular, we shall continue to build presence in the North and East of the country.

Technology and the Changing Parameters of Quality

Technology is changing the game for all players. Experienced players seem to have a preference for physical touch points, while new entrants prefer virtual ones, particularly mobile communications and the internet. IT thus becomes a strategic business driver
in our future plans. New technological solutions will induce cost efficiencies and improve customer service. Better management information, also provided by new technology, will improve results both qualitatively and quantitatively, while decentralisation and delegation will allow further improvements in response time and service quality.

Business Partner Capital

We believe the keystone of successful business is cooperation by broadening horizons, where it has yielded many revolutionary solutions and effective synergies.

Our engagement with businesses partners and suppliers are based on the concept of mutual benefit. Sustainability means long-term relationships based on mutual value creation.

Who are Our Business Partners?

Since much of our business revolves round vehicle leasing, insurance and the supply of vehicles, insurance companies and motor dealers are important strategic partners. We enjoy fruitful partnerships with several leading insurance companies, as well as suppliers of three-wheeled vehicles and commercial vehicles such as trucks and buses.

Our special partnership with Commercial Bank of Ceylon allows our customers to share the bank’s ATM network; we are also a sub-agent in HNB Bank’s MoneyGram network.

Creating Synergy in 2013/14

The conduct of business jointly with our partners created many positive synergies in the year under review. We held mutual promotions with a number of motor companies in which we extended lease facilities to enable their customers to purchase vehicles. Joint promotions of this kind were held with David Peiris Motor Company, Associated Motorways, Diesel & Motor Engineering and TVS Lanka.

Some partners leveraged our island wide network and expert marketing staff to build their own sales through joint efforts to promote our vehicle leasing facilities. We also display our partners’ product advertising at our branches together with material highlighting our own lease facilities.

Taking Strategic Partnerships into the Future

We will seek to leverage our existing partnerships to their full potential without losing sight of the principle of mutual benefit, looking to collaborate with our partners to improve profitability as well as sustainability. We shall also continue to strike up new partnerships in order to reach new customer bases and new markets. Finally, we shall continue to use our partnerships to help our own people acquire skills and knowledge that will be of benefit to us as well as to our partners.

Partnerships: Engagement Indicators, Year on Year

Activity	2013/14	2012/13
	Nos.	Nos.
Business partner products promoted by CDB	12	9

Employee Capital

We identify our employees, since they are our greatest asset. We appreciate everything they do for the business run. Nothing else can quite substitute for a few well-chosen.

One of the CDB’s core objectives is to promote and maintain harmonious relationships with and among its employees, creating a working environment in which they can learn, grow and perform. We promote and respect freedom of association and employee rights in keeping with the Constitution and current labour legislation of Sri Lanka, and are committed to fair treatment and non-discriminatory work practices.

As a growing company needing to attract, develop and retain the best talent at all levels, we put a great deal of stress on talent sourcing, training and development, and managing performance.

As employees are the most valuable asset we ensure that the future of CDB is in their hands since the future of the CDB rests on the profit generated from the quality of services offered by them and the resulting positive word of mouth and goodwill.

Believing that discipline is the most important ingredient, we maintain high standards of discipline inside CDB. Each employee is responsible for their actions while on duty and to behave due diligently. CDB’s whistle-blowing policy enables all employees to voice their concerns whenever they encounter something unfair irrespectively of their grades, types of employment or, gender. It has maintained a cordial relationship among all categories of staff ensuring industrial peace.

“We promise a safe environment crowded with ample opportunities to grow, while ensuring work-life balance and positive outcomes in professionalism through,

• Humanity

• Relationship

• Competencies

• Aspirations

• Performance”

We make a substantial investment on enhancing both quality and capacity of all employees through systematic training and development programmes. It is a continuous process of encouraging in higher studies and every effort is made to train and develop individuals through on the job or as closely allied to it as possible or sent to formal off the job courses either in Sri Lanka or overseas.

We support equality in both career advancements and remuneration and do not go by a hierarchical structure on promoting employees. Our preference is based on relevant skills and competencies as it is these qualities that will help the Company create sustainable value.

HR Policy

Touch Points

• We work with our people to define the tasks that need doing, create realistic goals and milestones, and motivate one another to achieve them.
• We do our best to provide a safe, healthy and stimulating work environment which facilitates innovation and allows every employee to contribute to his or her full potential.
• We recruit, retain and develop our employees to realise this potential; recognise and reward employee performance and commitment; appreciate and respect the contribution of every employees at every level, and strive to maintain our reputation as one of the best companies to work for.
• We are committed to uphold the rights of our employees under all circumstances and conditions.
• Our employee policy is non-discriminatory and our aim is to be fair and just to all. Our opposition to child labour and forced labour means that we do not conduct business in any form with any partner, customer, outsourcing agency or other stakeholder who may engage in such practices.
• We believe in and practice gender equality.
• All promotions, rewards and remuneration offered by CDB are based purely on merit.
• We abide by all Sri Lankan labour regulations and comply with all norms set out by the International Labour Organisation. No incidents of discrimination were recorded in the year under review.
• Minimum period of 4 to 12 weeks will be provided for an employee who has been affected by significant operational changes such as department change or assigning to a branch, to be comfortable with the new environment by giving time and resources to get trained.
• No collective bargaining agreements.

Recruitment Policy & Process

CDB aims to be the employer of choice for a diverse and inclusive workforce. This includes the representation of women, which can be challenging in our industry. Our philosophy is to provide competitive compensation and benefits and to offer professional development support keyed to each individual’s needs and capabilities.

We strive to recruit the best candidate for every position. This policy is supported by attractive market-based remuneration and employment policies. Our selection decisions are based on merit and we do not discriminate against any candidate on any grounds whatsoever. Internal candidates are always considered for new opportunities, which are also advertised on the Company intranet.

Whenever possible, providing other criteria are met, we recruit locally. This is part of our wider corporate policy of supporting rural social and economic development.

New recruits undergo a thorough orientation and induction process. During the year under review, ten induction sessions were conducted for new employees at different levels. The sessions involved a total of 150 participants and covered 40,000 training hours.

Internships

In the year under review, we instituted an internship programme for matriculants and undergraduates from universities across Sri Lanka who have limited or no working experience. Interns are offered comprehensive on-the-job training in divers disciplines at CDB.

The programme is designed to complement development-oriented studies with practical experience in development and volunteerism. Interns are involved in real-life business encounters that develop both their technical and ‘soft’ skills.

At present, there are 25 young people undergoing internships at CDB, while a further eight former interns have taken up permanent positions with us.

Rewarding and Recognising Our People

A well-structured and established system of rewards and recognition helps keep our people loyal, motivated and happy.

• All promotions, increases in compensation, etc., are related to performance and conduct.
• At corporate level employees who achieve or exceed their annual targets receive bronze, silver and gold medals. Every year, a few top achievers join the prestigious CDB Hundred-Million-Rupee Roundtable (RRT). The highest-performing RRT members were rewarded in 2012/13 with hotel vacations, trips abroad and, for the six champions of the year, a cruise with their family members aboard a luxury liner.
• We also recognise those who have served long with the Company, and reward them with benefits such as tours and paid resort-hotel vacations for themselves and their families.

External Recognition for Our People

The NASCO Awards, presented by the Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing, are coveted trophies that recognise aptitude and achievement among Sri Lankan sales professionals. At the National Sales Congress 2013 NASCO Awards, a number of our people were recognised as exceptional performers. Nadee de Silva was named Female Salesperson of the Year in the Financial Services category, awarded for the first time ever in 2013. Other winners were:

• Mr. J L Priyantha - Gold Award
• Mr. Dassana Chandrananda - Silver Award
• Mr. Udayanga Mathurarachchi - Bronze Award
• Ms. Dilini Prasadika - Bronze Award

Performance Appraisal

We conduct regular performance appraisals in order to determine appropriate promotion, training, remuneration, etc., for our people. Two performance appraisals covering all permanent and contract staff were conducted this year as part of the Company’s overall training and development programme.

Management-Employee Communications

Employees at CDB are encouraged to raise any concerns they may have about Company procedures or the individual actions of staff members, including Senior Management, and to disclose any information they may possess concerning possible fraudulent, unethical, or other improper behaviour or workplace misconduct. This may be done in total confidentiality and anonymity, without fear of retribution. We are committed to protect all employees who disclose unlawful or irregular conduct by the Company, its employees or other stakeholders.

More broadly, we encourage staff dialogue with management at all levels. This helps CDB gain valuable feedback, suggestions, ideas and timely warnings concerning strategic, operational and personnel matters. A suggestion scheme has been implemented to facilitate such dialogue.

In order to promote transparency amongst employees, all decisions are publicised internally. A staff event takes place at the beginning of the New Year in which Company performance is reviewed and future targets set out.

Employee Analysis

Our employee headcount as at 31st March 2014 was 1,109. This represents an increase of 34% from the previous financial year.

Employee Analysis, Year on Year

Indicator	2013/14	2012/13
	Nos.	Nos.
Employees	1,109	825
New Recruitments	733	557
Male	578	426
Female	155	313
Meetings Held
Sales Meeting	12	12
BOIC Meeting	12	12
Performance Reviews Conducted	2	2
Employee Turnover Ratio	16%	19%
Employee Distribution
Western Province	592	466
Outside WP	517	359
Training Hours	47,520	44,047

Analysis by Employment Type, Year on Year

Contract Type	2013/14	2012/13
	Nos.	Nos.
Permanent	465	389
Contract	644	436
Total	1,109	825

	2013/14	2012/13
	Nos.	Nos.
Male	815	615
Female	294	210
Total	1,109	825

Management Culture

Our corporate culture emphasises individual responsibility for decision-making coupled with strong management oversight. These results in a line-staff: management ratio of approximately 2.2.

Total Employees by Employment Category Year on Year

Category	2013/14	2012/13
	Nos.	Nos.
Front Line	866	568
Junior Management	149	145
Middle Management	65	88
Management	12	11
Senior Management	8	5
Top Management	9	8
Total	1,109	825

Gender Diversity

There is no gender discrimination at any level, although it is noticeable that gender balance tends to favour men in management positions. This is largely due to the different career paths often taken by men and women in Sri Lankan society rather than to any ‘glass ceiling’ effect.

Category	2013/14		2012/13
	Male Nos.	Female Nos.	Male Nos.	Female Nos.
Front Line	606	260	389	179
Junior Management	125	24	120	25
Middle Management	58	7	4	4
Managers	11	1	10	1
Senior Management	7	1	5	0
Top Management	8	1	7	7
Total	815	294	615	210

Category	2013/14	2012/13
	Nos.	Nos.
Front Line	234	146
Junior Management	141	137
Middle Management	61	82
Management	12	11
Senior Management	8	5
Top Management	9	8
Total	465	389

Gender	2013/14	2012/13
	Nos.	Nos.
Male	361	313
Female	104	76
Total	465	389

Gender	2013/14	2012/13
	Nos.	Nos.
Male	454	302
Female	190	134
Total	644	436

Region, Gender and Age

The following table gives an analysis of our workforce (permanent as well as contract) according to three salient parameters:

Province	2013/14		2012/13
	Male Nos.	Female Nos.	Male Nos.	Female Nos.
Central	92	19	32	17
North	17	10	21	12
Eastern	19	6	24	4
North-Central	35	9	41	10
Sabaragamuwa	75	18	51	10
Southern	60	21	43	9
Uva	18	3	40	10
North-Western	87	28	20	15
Western	412	180	343	123
Total	815	294	615	210

Recruitment Analysis

We believe in empowering young people. Our recruitment strategy is broadly youth-based. We prefer dynamic young people, mainly school leavers, who will adapt to our culture and thrive on it.

Age Group	2013/14		2012/13
	Number	%	Number	%
Below 20	108	15	13	2
20-25	476	65	399	51
25-30	122	17	110	14
30-35	16	2	24	3
35-40	9	1	5	1
40-45	2	1	6	1

As shown in the figure above, 65% of our recruits are aged 20-25, an investment in youth that will give us a substantial competitive advantage in the long-term.

We have also begun recruiting a relatively larger proportion of young women, as shown below:

Gender	2013/14		2012/13
	Number	%	Number	%
Male	578	60	131	17
Female	155	16	426	55
Total	733	76	557	72

It is our policy, as far as practicable, to offer employment opportunities to rural youth. The following table gives an analysis of recruitments by geographic location:

Province	2013/14		2012/13
	Number	%	Number	%
Central	85	9	68	9
Eastern	28	3	17	2
North-Central	19	2	35	5
North-Western	75	8	47	6
North	20	2	39	5
Sabaragamuwa	69	7	51	7
Southern	78	8	52	7
Uva	22	2	40	5
Western	337	35	208	27
Total	733	76	557	72

Recruitment Initiatives

BPA Programme

This is a programme in which students engaged in higher studies are recruited and assigned to multi disciplinary business projects under the diverse divisions in the company. Its intention is to attract and develop suitably qualified candidates to fill future positions in the company while exposing to different disciplines and train them to become future leaders. Participants receive an allowance from the programme which will help finance their studies, while also gaining valuable knowledge and experience.

Management Training Programme

Our management training programme provides opportunities for candidates who have completed their higher education to join CDB. All candidates must possess a Degree or another equivalent and relevant qualification, for example - in accounting or marketing from a recognised Sri Lankan or foreign university. Subjects covered in the programme include branch operations, back-office operations, Finance, HR and IT, and most participants are offered employment with CDB on successful completion of the programme.

Resignations and Dismissals

Gender	2013/14		2012/13
	Number	%	Number	%
Male	96	10	100	13
Female	58	6	44	6
Total	154	16	144	19

Province	2013/14		2012/13
	Number	%	Number	%
Central	7	1	16	2
Eastern	11	1	14	2
North-Central	6	1	11	1
North-Western	15	2	10	1
North	7	1	9	1
Sabaragamuwa	11	1	11	1
Southern	25	3	12	2
Uva	3	0.31	13	2
Western	69	7	48	6
Total	154	16	144	19

Age Group	2013/14		2012/13
	Number	%	Number	%
Below 25	78	8	84	11
25-30	50	55	29	4
30-35	16	2	16	2
35-40	6	1	8	1
40-45	1	0.1	4	1
45-50	0	0	2	0.26
Over 50	3	0.31	1	0.13

Work at CDB

Even in an age when technology has reduced face-to-face contacts between individuals, the human factor remains central to the successful and profitable operation of our business. It is through our people that our vision and business goals are translated into results. In return, we support their growth by helping each one plot a well-defined, personally satisfying course of career progression and professional growth.

Our commitment to building a diverse and skilled workforce is manifested in a stimulating environment of continuous learning and open dialogue.

We attract, retain and motivate the best people not only through generous pay and benefits but by extending opportunities in development, training and leadership.

Remuneration and Benefits

Our remuneration policy and practices are compliant with all relevant national regulations as well as with the broader principles of equality and fairness. Apart from salary and statutory benefits, employee compensation also includes the following:

• Medical insurance in the form of a CDB Suwa Saviya package
• Reimbursement for non-hospitalisation-related medical expenditure
• Group life insurance cover

In addition, employees are eligible for special benefits based on the nature of their work, location of their workplaces, etc. Benefits in this category include vehicle loans, fuel allowances, vehicle allowances, mobile phone bill payments, risk allowances, distance allowances, sales incentives, staff loans of up to three months’ salary, refunds of fees paid for membership in relevant professional bodies or to sit relevant examinations, a death donation scheme, wedding gifts, roundtable awards, etc.

Remuneration and Gender

We continue to make progress in reducing discrepancies in compensation between men and women, as shown by the following comparison:

Basic Salary, Women vs. Men, Year on Year

Category	2013/14	2012/13
Front Line	1:0.88	1:1.51
Junior Management	1:0.73	1:1.59
Middle Management	1:0.60	1:1.50
Managers	1:10.06	1:1.25
Senior Management	1:8.88	1:1.74

We put our time, effort and money into training, grooming and encouraging our employees so that they will be able to go up the corporate ladder successfully.

Training and Development

At CDB, training and development objectives are always aligned to business strategy and market trends. Apart from specialised subject training for selected individuals and groups of employees, the CDB Training Centre is involved in group-wide activities such as the induction programme for new employees.

Enhancing our people’s professional abilities through higher education remains an integral part of our continuous development process. CDB encourages employees to pursue all relevant forms of academic or professional education: granting study leave, reimbursing any examination or professional membership fees they may incur.

If an employee has been affected by any significant operational transition, such as a change of department or branch, a period of between one and three months is allowed for reorientation in the new environment, during which the individual is given the time and resources to acquire appropriate training.

Internal and External Training Programmes in 2013/14

Programme	Participants Nos.	Days Nos.	Person-Hours	Male Nos.	Female Nos.	Training Hours
Induction	690	4	8	552	138	22,080
Training for Deposit Sales Staff	146	6	8	120	26	1,168
Training for Leasing Sales Staff	211	6	8	211	0	1,688
Technical Training for Cashiers	143	3	8	35	108	1,144
Technical Training for Credit Officers	160	3	8	115	45	1,280
Technical Training for Customer Service Officers	112	2	8	0	112	1,792
Customer Service for Operations	202	4	8	84	118	1,616
Sales and Service Techniques for Sales Staff	225	5	8	212	13	1,800
Grooming and Social Etiquettes Training Programme	50	1	8	0	50	400
Leadership Training	60	5	8	58	2	480
Leadership Training for Branch Heads	50	1	8	42	13	480
Speechcraft	50	24	4	42	13	2,400
External Leadership	8	1	8	7	1	64
Management Training	28	14	8	15	13	3,136
Training Programmes for Entry Level Staff	68	14	8	28	40	7,616
Foreign Training Programmes	5	3	8	5	0	120
Other External Programmes	32	1	8	25	7	256

Skills Management and Lifelong Learning Programmes 2013/14

Programme Type	Participants Nos.	Days Nos.	Hours/ Person/Day	Male Nos.	Female Nos.	Training Hours
Grooming and Social Etiquette	50	1	8	0	50	400
Leadership Training Programme for Branch Heads	110	5	8	85	25	4,400
Speechcraft	50	24	4	42	13	5,280
External Leadership Programme	8	1	8	7	1	64

Category	2013/14	2012/13
	Hours	Hours
Front Line	39	36
Junior Management	29	21
Middle Management	28	32
Management	17	18
Senior Management	14	16
Total	127	123

Category	2013/14	2012/13
	Hours	Hours
Male	26	24
Female	17	16
Total	43	40

Employees Trained in Anti-Corruption Policies and Procedures, Year on Year (%)

2013/14		2012/13
Managerial Nos.	Non-Managerial Nos.	Managerial Nos.	Non-Managerial Nos.
20	68	19	55

Overall, 8% of CDB’s workforce is trained in the organisation’s anti-corruption policies and procedures. This represents 2% of managerial and 6% of non-managerial staff.

Communication Skills: The Speechcraft Programme

Effective public speaking and interactive communications are an essential part of every executive’s skill set. To help our employees acquire these vital skills, CDB recently concluded its second successive annual ‘Speechcraft’ programme in collaboration with BSI Toastmasters’ Club. The 12-week programme, which was based on Toastmasters International Guidelines, gave participants the opportunity to learn and practice different technical aspects of communication and leadership. The confidence and knowledge gained by all participants was evident when formal speeches were made at the closing ceremony.

Life at CDB

At CDB, life has meaning beyond the ambit of work, achievement and promotion. We strive to create a positive work-life balance for every employee in order to reduce stress, increase commitment and loyalty and improve productivity.

Welfare and Recreation Club

The club is to promote and enhance the well-being of our people. It is run by a committee annually elected by its members. The club promotes social as well as welfare activities and sometimes provides financial assistance to staff members facing personal difficulties; club funds are also used to finance sports activities in which members participate.

The club also organises various social and devotional events on an annual basis, such as staff social, sports meet and celebrations at Vesak and Christmas.

Among club activities in the year under review, the following deserve special note:

• Dental Week: A weeklong oral health awareness programme conducted for staff at our head office.
• Talent Show: An enthusiastically attended celebration of entertainment talent among our people. A highlight of the show was a ‘CDB orchestra’ made up entirely of staff members playing different musical instruments.
• Sports Day: Our third Annual Sports Day was held at the Bloomfield Cricket and Athletic Club grounds in September. Encouraging employees to participate in sports helps fulfil our goal of a fitter happier workforce and helps develop team spirit and leadership qualities.
• Vesak Bakthi Gee and Ice Cream Dansala: All the staff at CDB celebrated the festival of Vesak with a programme of Bakthi Gee followed by a Vesak lantern competition and an ice cream dansala.
• Christmas Carols: CDB staff together celebrated the Christmas season with carol singing at the Church of Our Lady of Peace, Maligawatta.
• CDB Wonderland: The annual CDB dinner and social was held in December this year at the Havelock Sports Club grounds in Colombo.
• Eye Care: For the first time, CDB successfully initiated yet another project aimed at improving the eye care aspect of CDB staff members by the participation of a well-qualified group of optometrists and consulted our staff individually with state-of-the-art equipment. The eye clinic was held for two consecutive days and was centred on basic optical tests including eye test for prescription, eye pressure check, and cataract check and provided medical advice. The programme was a huge success with a recorded participation of 220 staff members.

Sports at CDB

For the reasons stated above, support and encouragement for staff sporting activities is an important part of CDB’s human resources policy.
As a result, our people are high achievers in the world of corporate sporting competition. Some of their achievements on the field are pictured below:

• CDB Rugby Team: Winners of the Mercantile Ball Championship in 2013, having beaten HSBC, NTB, Dialog and Commercial Credit.
• CDB Netball Team: They made history by winning the Mercantile Netball ‘C’ Division Championship on their maiden appearance, beating John Keells, DFCC, LB Finance and Singer Finance.
• CDB Cricket Team: Our team reached the Semi-Final stage in the Mercantile Cricket ‘F’ Division 30-Over Championship, having beaten HNB ‘B’, Amãna Takaful, Hilton International, MAS Active and Kanrich Finance.

No one can whistle a symphony. It takes a whole orchestra to play it. CDB is one team. Together everyone achieves more!

• CDB Volleyball Team: Reigning Champions in 2012, lost in a very close final at the Finance House Sports Meet in 2013.
• CDB Athletic Team: Winners of five medals in the Mercantile Athletic Meet 2013, including a Gold in the Women’s 4x400m relay, two Silver Medals in the Women’s High Jump and Triple Jump, and two Bronze Medals for the Men’s 100m Flat Race and the Women’s 800m Race.

Engaging with Our People: Future Outlook

As we move forward together into the future, CDB and its employees collaborate to further improve the quality of engagement and personal development that is so essential to our purposes and our practice. The following is a synopsis of future planned initiatives in human resources management and development at CDB.

Human Resources Information System

A new state-of-the-art Human Resources Information System (HRIS) from Hsenid went on line during the year under review. The system will help us manage staff welfare, training, remuneration, etc., more efficiently and effectively. The new system provides a comprehensive set of functionalities to improve HR processes and achieve higher standards of human capital management.

Succession Planning Roadmap

We are in the process of formulating and initiating a succession development roadmap that will help us plan better for the future of the Company. The programme aims to ensure availability of a talent pool to continue current business effectively and efficiently and also to cater to the organisation’s strategic staff talent needs.

Leadership Development Programme

The CDB leadership development programme will target high-potential staff who can meet the challenges of leadership - people with a global mindset, the courage to act, and exceptional intellectual foresight. The people we identify will be provided with special training and mentoring, numerous learning opportunities and on-the-job resources that will put them on the fast track to their career goals.

Government and Regulatory Authorities Capital

We maintain a close and cordial relationship with such external organisations as the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Colombo Stock Exchange, Securities and Exchange Commission, Department of Inland Revenue etc. We appreciate their efforts in strengthening financial sector stability and advice and guidance to streamline our operations. We have has taken measures to comply in all respects with all the rules and regulations imposed by the relevant authorities and remain vigilant to ensure that compliance is maintained at all times.

Our Regulatory Approach

Central Bank of Sri Lanka

The Central Bank is the regulatory body for all financial institutions in Sri Lanka. The following table sets out a comparison between its statutory requirements and corresponding levels of compliance by CDB.

Compliance with CBSL Requirements

Regulatory Authorities	2013/14	2012/13
	Rs. ’000	Rs. ’000
Liquidity
Required Minimum Amount of Liquid Assets	2,570,757	1,737,529
Available Amount of Liquid Assets	4,545,811	2,519,142
Required Minimum Amount of Government Securities	1,184,013	719,566
Available Amount of Government Securities	1,887,200	1,218,127
Capital Adequacy
Core Capital to Risk-Weighted Assets Ratio (Minimum 5%)	12.61%	14.32%
Total Capital to Risk-Weighted Assets Ratio (Minimum 10%)	16.00%	14.32%
Capital Funds to Total Deposit Liabilities Ratio (Minimum 10%)	17.36%	15.65%

Securities and Exchange Commission

As the regulator of the Colombo Stock Exchange, the Commission from time to time makes rules for the purpose of ensuring fair and orderly and trading and the protection of investors. CDB has been in full compliance with said regulations throughout the year and has made timely provision of financial information to the regulator.

Colombo Stock Exchange

While subject to regulation and supervision by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Exchange also makes its own rules to expedite and regulate operations. CDB has been in full compliance with the rules and regulations of the Exchange throughout the review period and has supplied timely and accurate Financial Statements as required.

Department of Inland Revenue

We have taken steps to ensure that we are in full compliance with all rules and regulations made by the Department of Inland Revenue and have discharged all our income tax and VAT obligations in accordance with the law. A specially-appointed committee responds to queries from the Department, provides up to date information and is in charge of ensuring that operational and accounting changes are made as required by the Department from time to time.

Other Legal and Regulatory Compliance

1. No complaints or legal actions pertaining to anti-competitive behaviour, anti-trust or monopolistic practices were instituted against the Company; neither has the Company been obliged to pay any fines or submit to any sanctions for non-compliance with the relevant laws and regulations.
2. No complaints or legal actions were instituted against the Company for non-compliance with any environmental or public health laws or regulations; neither has the Company been obliged to pay any fines or submit to any sanctions for non-compliance with the relevant laws and regulations.

Looking Forward

No major changes in the regulatory regime are anticipated in the near future. Until such time as circumstances call for change, we will continue our monthly meetings and compliance discussions while ensuring compliance and keeping all stakeholders acquainted with the relevant rules and regulations.

Social and Environmental Capital

CDB’s social safeguarding policies of sustainability encompass human rights, labour rights, corporate governance and societal cohesion. We run through a process of urban funding and rural lending. We also focus on individuals’ behaviours, attitudes and actions. The ideal sustainable life style is not one centred on consumption but understanding and appreciating its minimalistic requirements.

“Providing access to credit through urban funding and rural lending we enable individuals to improve their quality of life and enhance their financial security”

CDB holistically views the concept of being sustainable towards local community through the contribution towards developing a greener environment, protection of local and regional ecosystems; minimise wastage, affordable provision of quality health prevention, care, and treatment services for all community members. The basic human rights are respected and defended against injustices, anti-corruption, protection, enhancement and appreciation of community manifestations of cultural diversity, treasures, customs and traditions.

CDB is a socially responsible and humane corporate citizen. Our most important contribution to sustainable development is to operate effectively as a financial institution and to be a positive influence in all the business areas and communities we operate in. We achieve these goals by empowering customers, partners and communities through our operations and in various ways through entrepreneurship, education and social intervention.

In particular, we recognise the challenge of climate change and will consider supporting any meaningful effort to reduce its negative impacts on humanity and the environment.

We believe the highest use of capital is not to make more money, but to make money to do more for the betterment of life. Going forward, we donated our 7th state-of-the-art lab to nurture IT literacy in rural youth this time at Kandapola Maha Vidyalaya.

Summary of CSR Activity

Indicator	2013/14	2012/13
IT Labs Donated (Nos.)	1	1
Scholarships Disbursed (CDB Sisudiri) (Nos.)	57	33
Employees Recruited from Rural Provinces (Nos.)	396	349
Investment in Community Development (Rs. Mn)	3.3	3.1
Lending Portfolio Outside Western Province (Nos.)	9,062	8,686
Lending Portfolio Outside Western Province as a % of Total Lending Portfolio	37.78	48.17

We continue to invest in education and entrepreneurship as well as in numerous development programmes among the communities in which we operate. Our social investment programmes focus mainly on learning and entrepreneurship, which areas our staff have identified as best aligned with our core values. Our approach encourages and facilitates employee volunteerism and charitable donations.

	2013/14	2012/13	2011/12	2010/11	2009/10
Loan Amount (Nos.)	19	22	25	34	50

Empowering Entrepreneurs

Intrinsic to our business model is the empowerment of rural residents and the underprivileged. We are a net lender to the rural communities in which we operate, using funds from urban depositors to help uplift the rural economy. Given the ample supply of lending institutions in the Western Province, we have made a conscious effort to move out to under-served rural communities. CDB Leasing and loan products with easy collateral requirements have succeeded in bringing numerous rural entrepreneurs into the formal economic sector.

Indicator	2013/14	2012/13
	Rs. Mn	Rs. Mn
Lending Portfolio	9,062	8,686
Deposit Portfolio	7,356	6,184
Net Lending	1,706	2,502

Helping Rural Youth Help Their Communities

Our branch recruitment policy emphasises the selection of local candidates. By recruiting from the communities in which we operate, we gain numerous operational and financial advantages as a Company while contributing to local social and economic uplift in the most sustainable possible way. This policy also contributes to reducing youth migration to Colombo and other urban centres, a desirable social goal. A breakdown of recruitments by province, is given in the same chapter of this Report.

Region	2013/14	2012/13
	Nos.	Nos.
Western Province	592	466
Outside Western Province	517	359
Total	1,109	825

CDB Diriliya: A Helping Hand for Women

Women form the backbone of Sri Lanka’s rural economy but their contribution is insufficiently acknowledged in society and in our industry. By recognising and supporting their efforts, we can help women take on new and more important roles in society.

One simple way of doing this is to make women responsible for household credit obligations and financial management. A lending instrument like CDB Diriliya, which is reserved for women and offers concessionary credit and repayment terms, helps achieve this.

CDB Sisudiri: Helping Rural Children Stay in Education

The CDB Sisudiri Foundation disburses scholarships to high performers in the Grade Five Scholarship and GCE Ordinary Level Examinations. The programme is now in its seventh year. Recipients of these scholarships are children from low-income families, specifically the children of three-wheeler owners. The selection process is transparent and resulted this year a total of 57 scholarships awarded, to a total value of Rs. 2.5 Mn.

Sudusiri Scholarships Awarded, 2008-2013

Examination	Season 1 Nos.	Season 2 Nos.	Season 3 Nos.	Season 4 Nos.	Season 5 Nos.	Season 6 Nos.
Grade V	26	24	18	30	22	43
Ordinary Level (O/L)	0	7	15	10	11	14
Total	26	31	33	40	33	57

CDB Pariganaka Piyasa

CDB’s Pariganaka Piyasa project delivers IT education to young people in rural areas, helping them compete with urban candidates for employment on a more even basis. Through the project, pupils at schools in underprivileged rural communities are given access to information technology and educated in how to use it. In 2013/14, 225 students were benefited directly from this project.

Year	Name of the School	Students Nos.	Students Attending IT as Compulsory Subject Nos.	Students Sat for the IT subject in the year 2012 Nos.
2009/10	Nadigamvila Maha Vidyalaya	210	50	10
2010/11	Navankuli Maha Vidyalaya	700	40	15
2011/12	Ethawatunuweva Vidyalaya	340	150	2
2012/13	Swarnapradeepa Maha Vidyalaya	225	35	0

CDB Hithawathkam - Engaging Employees

Our people share our commitment to sustainability. CDB Hithawathkam is a vehicle created to facilitate individual employees’ efforts to contribute towards our goals in this area.

In 2013/14, Hithawathkam organised a blood donation programme at the CDB Head Office in early January. 81 units of blood were donated by employees at all levels.

Hithawathkam is also active in our branches, encouraging volunteerism and organising volunteer efforts to ensure that they are appropriate and effective.

Students’ Savings Units

In the year under review, we opened 18 new Student Savings Units at schools in different parts of the country covering Battaramulla, Embilipitiya, Malabe, Ratmalana, Wattala, Batticaloa, Trincomalee, Mathugama, Kelaniya, Vavuniya, Eheliyagoda, Nittambuwa, Colombo 10, Rajagiriya, Ambalangoda, Moratuwa and two units in Jaffna. These are intended to promote saving among school children and, we hope, turn them into lifelong savers and CDB customers. These units also help increase consumer awareness of our Rankati savings product for minors.

Looking Forward

Our contribution to national development is consistent with the nature of our operations: that is, we will continue to promote economic growth by helping people turn their ideas into business success. In thus promoting enterprise, we will continue to concentrate on rural women and young people, whom we will support by promoting appropriate enterprise through lending and by developing their enterprise skills, as well as by expanding lending to rural customers in general.

We will also continue to support and co-ordinate our employees’ charitable efforts.

Environmental Protection and Conservation

CDB firmly believes that each of us is accountable to ensuring that our planet must be preserved for the future generations. Therefore, we have initiated policies and strategies to make a difference in this regard through our slogan ‘Mihikathata Adaren’.

Green Approach, Green Policy and Green Practices - Reaching Environmental Sustainability

Our approach to environmental protection is part of our philosophy of business sustainability. Through our commitment to - as far as possible - reduce, re-use and recycle the natural resources on which we depend, we help preserve the green environment and create healthier working conditions for our people even as we help ensure the long-term viability of our business.

We have already put much thought and effort into reducing our carbon footprint and encouraging carbon-consciousness among our stakeholders. Now, we are in the process of developing a comprehensive environmental-protection and conservation plan for CDB, with the following outputs:

• More efficient and productive use of water, electricity, and non-recyclable equipment
• A series of workshops and seminars to raise public environmental awareness
• Continued full adherence to all environmental laws and regulations
• Information provided to all our people regarding environmental concerns, policies and action
• Monitoring and evaluation of environmental objectives and targets through internal audits and management reviews

The management of energy, effluents and wastes from our business processes is important to the environment where we operate. To minimise our environmental footprint, we design processes that avoid or reduce demand for hazardous materials, reuse or recycle materials, and prevent the generation of waste. Therefore, we apply reusing and recycling as a control of preservation to safeguard the greenery for the long term.

“Our most focused initiative has been to reduce our carbon footprint and in encouraging our stakeholders to perform in a similar manner. Electricity, water and paper form a considerable segment of usage within CDB and requires immense focus if we are to reduce our carbon footprint. It is imperative therefore that sustainable waste management programmes are initiated in all these areas to ensure that we manage our carbon footprint better”

Green Routines at Work

Being green is a full-time job. The following comprises a list of day-to-day activities we undertake at CDB in the interests of conservation and sustainability:

• We regularly communicate the importance of environmental protection and energy saving to our people through notices, emails and intranet newsletters. Employees are thus kept up to date on environmental policy changes, while individuals are encouraged and taught to take voluntary action against waste and pollution.
• We make sure that all lights and electronic office equipment are switched-off or in standby mode when idle and that power-saving settings are fully utilised when they are in use.
• Incandescent bulbs are always replaced with CFLs.
• Obsolete VGA computer monitors are likewise replaced with LED monitors.
• We regularly canvass suggestions from employees on waste reduction and conservation, as well as on sustainability-promoting projects and interventions.

Reducing Emissions

Vehicle leasing makes up our fifths of our business by volume. We therefore hold ourselves accountable to ensure that vehicle emissions are controlled and reduced as far as possible.

We have conducted several awareness programmes on this subject for leasing customers, and are happy to offer eco-friendly advice for fuel-saving vehicle management. Supporting this effort, we have begun monitoring the emission levels of our customers’ vehicles with the help of a private emissions-testing firm.

Waste Management

For the second successive year, we carried out a wastepaper recycling campaign at the CDB Head Office in collaboration with Neptune Papers, a recycling firm.

With the help of technology, we are moving ever nearer the ideal of a paperless office. What paper we continue to use is largely recycled internally (copy and printer paper) or externally (brochures, etc.), and we do our best to ensure that every sheet is used on both sides before it is finally recycled.

Results of Our Conservation Efforts Year on Year

Source	Savings (Units)
	2013/14	2012/13
Full-grown trees (Nos.)	34	18
Oil (l)	3,470	1,885
Electricity (kW/h)	7,908	4,296
Water (l)	62,829	34,132
Landfill (m3)	6	3
Greenhouse Gas Emissions (carbon equiv’t kg)	1,977	1,074

Mobile Phone and CFL Recycling

Every year at our head office, we collect obsolete mobile phones and unusable CFL bulbs for recycling. The collected items are dispatched to, respectively, a leading telecommunications company and a consumer goods manufacturer who, with the aid of specialised techniques, are able to recover over 90% of the materials used in these devices.

Reducing Energy and Water Consumption

During this year, CDB used a total of 99,909 litres of water and 408,836 units of electricity in our business operations. Large quantities of both resources were saved through process redesign, conversion and retrofitting of equipment and changes in personnel behaviour.

Our consumption indicators improved considerably in the year under review, due largely to growing conservation awareness among our employees, who are also made accountable for their consumption and therefore have an incentive to keep waste to a minimum. We held several information campaigns to help build employee awareness in this area.

Indicator	2013/14	2012/13
Electricity Consumed at HO (CEB Units)	408,836	337,895
Drinking Water Consumed at HO (Litres)	99,909	187,494
CSR Meetings Held (Nos.)	6	6

CDB Theth Bim Tharanaya 2014:
Wetlands Conservation (CSR Project)

On World Wetlands Day (2 Feb), government agencies, non-Governmental organisations and Citizen Groups take action to raise public awareness of wetlands and their essential ecological function.

Sri Lanka’s mangrove wetlands are under threat from economic development and climate change. For the second year in succession, CDB, in partnership with the Department of Coast Conservation and Coastal Resource Management, the Southern Provincial Council, the Central Environment Authority, the Department of Education (Southern Province) and the Divisional Secretariat (Balapitiya), conducted a wetlands conservation project at Madu River in Balapitiya in 2013. Together, the river and Randombe Lake, to which it is connected by two narrow channels, form the Madu Ganga wetland; CDB, along with its project partners, planted mangroves to enhance tree cover. Assorted initiatives aimed at making the intervention sustainable through community commitment included a quiz competition and field studies for local schoolchildren.

Theth Bim Tharanaya Evaluation

Indicator	2013/14	2012/13
	Nos.	Nos.
Wetland Trees Planted	100	100
Islands Covered	5	5
Schools	5	5
Schoolchildren who Participated	50	50

Our belief is that caring for our environment requires everyone's effort, no matter how small the effort may seem. CDB staff joined their hands in conducting a wetlands conservation project at Madu River in Balapitiya.

The Future is Green and Sustainable

We will continue to consider environmental impacts in every strategic decision we make at CDB, and to ensure that all projects and activities we undertake are designed and carried out with these considerations in mind. This includes routine business activity.

Recycling efforts, with which we have made a beginning at our head office, will be extended to our branch network as well.

We will continue to engage our employees with environmental and conservation initiatives and strive to make them environmentally conscious citizens at home as well as at work.

We will implement projects to build awareness of conservation and environmental protection among our stakeholders, in particular among the schoolchildren who will form the next generation of adult Sri Lankans. We will conduct programmes and workshops, offer green tips for daily life, encourage the use of biodegradable and energy-saving products and the proper disposal of waste in school and at home.

An important planned initiative is vehicle emissions reduction through an integrated, collaborative programme that involves improvements in and advice on emissions standards, cleaner fuels, vehicle inspections, maintenance, etc. All vehicles leased through us will be supplied with a ‘green manual’ containing advice on usage and maintenance in order to reduce emissions from the vehicle. These are just a few of the ways in which we shall continue to make a difference into the long-term future.