Freda Corea
Mrs. Freda Corea was the only daughter of Mr. John Kothalawela (senior) and Alice Elizabeth Attygalle and the sister of one-time Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, Sir John Kothalawela, and Mr. Justin Kothalawela, a well-known person in the private sector. She was educated at Bishop’s College, Colombo. She married Dr. C.V.S. Corea from a well-known family in Chilaw.
She was deeply religious and a devout Christian. Her friends and relations recall her as a lady whose benevolence and kindness knew no bounds. The Horton Lodge donated by Dr. Gamani Corea to the Gamani Corea Foundation was where Freda Corea lived. She maintained the house and garden beautifully and it was an open house for people from all walks of life.
Freda Corea Awards-2024
The Freda Corea Awards project was initiated by the Gamani Corea Foundation in 2023 in memory of Mrs. Freda Corea the mother of Dr. Gamani Corea. The theme of the project is Women’s Empowerment. It aims to recognize and reward inspirational women who have effectively defeated poverty by overcoming problems, obstacles, and challenges and uplifted their family status by empowering themselves through determination and creativity. It is hoped that the efforts of these women will act as an incentive for other like-minded women to follow in their footsteps.
Today, it is crucial that every citizen contributes to the economic recovery of the country. Within this context, women’s role in this endeavour is vital. However, currently, only 33% of women contribute to the workforce and there is an increase in women-headed households. The woman carries the burden of providing for their family, looking after the children, and attending to all household duties. Due to time constraints and other factors, their latent talents that can contribute to the country’s development effort are underutilized.
The Freda Corea Awards 2023 conducted as a research-based competition, threw up several new avenues and opportunities for empowering rural women and preparing them to make a more meaningful and productive contribution to the country’s future economic development.
Phase II of the FCA competition will be on the same lines as Phase I where inspirational women with a success story to share and their story writers will be recognized and rewarded. However, from the information we obtained through the research done in Phase I, it was clear that the problems faced by poor and middle-income women have not been adequately addressed. Therefore, FCA Phase II will try to ascertain through the story writers, the ideas of the women themselves and other knowledgeable people in the provinces on possible strategies and solutions to the problems. These strategies and solutions will be communicated to the policymakers and other stakeholders to take necessary action to address the issues holistically to effectively empower rural women to face the challenges of the future.
The Concept
A Competition for Story Writers:
It is a fact that women play a major role, in the country’s economy while uplifting the quality of life, and social standing of their families. Their stories about how they cope with the challenges of this situation and become winners would undoubtedly inspire others facing similar challenges. In addition, they could provide a useful guide to policymakers in formulating future policies for the betterment of society in general.
Writers should identify such inspirational women/community-based women’s initiatives and collect research findings through personal dialogue with them. The challenges, obstacles, and problems they faced and how they overcame them as well as their solutions and suggestions on how to take the project forward should be the basis of their stories.
Theme – Inspirational Women
The Freda Corea Awards 2024 will be conducted at the provincial level.
Eligibility as Writers
1. The competition is open to all citizens of Sri Lanka above the age of 18 years irrespective of other considerations. Retired writers are also welcome.
2. Writers need not be from the province they select their story.
3. They are entitled to write stories from any province and should identify stories that conform to the above requirements of the competition.
4. Only one story can be submitted about one inspirational woman or a community based women’s initiative.
Target Group
Low and middle-income earning women/community-based women’s initiatives that have reached a significant level of success in uplifting their family/community status and are currently contributing to the country’s development effort.
Story Categories
The story writer should identify women’s projects whose success would be an inspiration to others.
Stories can be submitted under the following categories:
1. Family Emancipation
2. Entrepreneurship (Micro-enterprises or SMEs)
3. Outstanding Achievement
Family Emancipation: This category should focus on contemporary homemakers who have undergone unsurmountable hardship and overcome great challenges, and who have a success story to share.
Entrepreneurship: Women/Community-based Women’s initiatives that have achieved considerable success in the Micro-Enterprise or Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) sectors through their creativity, and determination. This sector includes contemporary small and medium-scale entrepreneurs who have started with minimal capital investment and have managed to reach considerable heights in terms of product development, business acumen, job creation, Forex income, eco-friendliness, and novelty.
Exceptional Achievement- Women who have attracted fame through local and/or global recognition. The main focus of this category should be local or international recognition gained by overcoming obstacles, problems, and challenges. They could include those who excelled in science, technology, sports, arts, defense, education, or any other notable field.
Registration Process
• Applicants will be invited to register as writers for the competition through:
1. Newspaper advertisements published in all three languages Sinhala, Tamil, and English.
2. Posters inviting writers will be printed and dispatched to Universities and Academic Institutes.
3. Advertisements already produced to be posted on Facebook and boosted to reach a large audience.
4. Two TV interviews in Sinhala and Tamil.
Applicants who want to participate in the competition should look out for the above newspaper advertisements that will be published on the 28th of July.
• After identifying a suitable inspirational woman, applicants should send an application to register as a writer with a summary of the story of their choice (one A4 page in Word and PDF formats) to enable the evaluators to determine whether their story qualifies to enter the competition.
• Applicants should use font 12 (Times New Roman for English stories, Iscola potha – for Sinhala, and Bamini For Tamil in Word and PDF formats) when submitting their entries.
• Handwritten applications will not be accepted.
• Sinhala and Tamil entries should be sent in Unicode.
Selection for Submission of Final Stories
• The summaries sent will be shortlisted and selected writers will be invited to submit their final entries to the competition.
• The submitted final story should include practicable suggestions by the owners of the story and other stakeholders on improving the project.
• The Gamani Corea Foundation will provide a data sheet to be completed by the writer, after studying the project and collecting the necessary information from the relevant stakeholders.
• Writers should collect information through face-to-face interviews with owners of the stories and other stakeholders.
Please note: The owners of the stories that won 1st 2nd and 3rd prizes at the Freda Corea Awards 2023 competition cannot be the subject of stories submitted to Freda Corea Awards 2024.
Awards
The Freda Corea Awards 2024, will offer attractive prizes to both the inspirational women/community-based women’s projects and their story writers.
Writers and awardees will be awarded prizes for the 1st 2nd and 3rd best stories from each province as indicated below.
Terms & Conditions
1. Stories can be submitted in English, Sinhala or Tamil.
2. All stories submitted must be the original work of the writer.
3. The writer should get permission from the prospective awardee, to write her story and submit it along with her written
approval of the story. The prospective awardee must endorse all submissions related to her story.
4 The authenticity of the short-listed candidates, the information stated in the written submissions and the stories will be
verified by a team of the GCF who will visit them for the purpose.
5. Stories will be judged according to a marks-based marking scheme by an evaluation committee appointed specially for the purpose.
6. The decision of the evaluation committee regarding the winners will be final and cannot be contested.
7. The Gamani Corea Foundation cannot be held responsible for any losses or damages caused to anyone due to this endeavor.
8. Authenticity of the submissions will be rechecked independently by contacting the relevant person/s and doing a background check.
Final stories should conform to the following requirements: (for all three languages)
• Should be between 1500 – 2000 words
• The writers can submit stories in English, Sinhala or Tamil.
• Stories should be submitted in ‘Word’ and PDF formats in font size 12
• The story should have a well-defined beginning, a body, and an end.
• They should be written in clear concise language which can be easily understood.
• Each sentence should not be longer than three lines.
• A story should focus only on one inspirational woman or community-based project.
• A writer can select one, two, or all three categories to write stories.
• A writer can write one or more stories in each category.
• Stories should be based on facts validated by the owner of the story.
Registration As a Writer
Please fill in the registration form and send it by email to:
shiraneemanagerfca@gmail.com
chandanacoordinatorfca@gmail.com
amcerm.gcf@gmail.com
Or
send by registered post to:
Shiranee Dissanayake
Consultant
Gamani Corea Foundation
21, Horton Place
Colombo 7