September 7th, 2022 – Colombo: Sri Lankans witnessed the real magic of human connections through a simple and uplifting message of unity, inclusion and positivity from Coca-Cola.
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, every aspect of life has been disrupted and the way the whole world operates has changed significantly. The pandemic has kept people apart for long periods of time, isolating them in their homes away from much-needed human contact. Following the pandemic, Sri Lanka is facing an economic crisis that has caused hardships across the country. However, in a heart-warming turn of events, this adverse situation has also brought people together in a manner never seen before.
Pankaj Sinha, Managing Director of Coca-Cola – Sri Lanka and Maldives stated, “The simple moments in life, like enjoying your meal with a Coke, have always been magical experiences. You can always enhance this experience and enjoy the magic of human connection by sitting down to consume your meal with friends and family. Simple day-to-day moments such as these have now become magical experiences with people connecting, living in the moment, and exchanging ideas. These moments of togetherness are what Sri Lanka needs today as we strive to find common ground and uplift ourselves to create a better future.”
In keeping with the country-wide efforts to ease the economic burden on communities, Coca-Cola partnered with Voice of Asia (VOA) Broadcasting Network with the aim of identifying and supporting families who are facing poverty. Accordingly, individuals were given the chance to nominate a family in need by calling or messaging VOA, with all nominees being entered into a draw where Coca-Cola chose 300 winners to distribute dry ration packs of essential goods. Nominations were accepted from 20th June to 19th July 2022, and winners were chosen across all districts on a daily basis. Overall, across the 30 days open for nominations, over 4,100 people were nominated from all 25 districts while Coke and VOA gave away dry ration packs to 300 families.
Coca-Cola “Real Magic” is all about the simple moments in everyday life that are unexpectedly turned into magical moments through connection with our fellow human beings. These magical moments elevate the mundane experiences into extraordinary ones and in today’s digitally connected yet physically divided world this simple fact is more relevant than ever before as we all strive to make a connection with the people we love and help those in need.
