Poornima Meegammana

Poornima Meegammana, a prominent Sri Lankan social entrepreneur, is deeply committed to empowering girls and women in the realm of technology. She is the founder of the prestigious Nextgen Girls in Technology initiative, a groundbreaking endeavor aimed at bolstering the participation of girls and women in technology career paths. Throughout the past decade, Meegammana has tirelessly devoted herself to the advancement of technology education and development, with a particular emphasis on young people.Her unwavering dedication in this field has garnered her numerous prestigious global accolades, including the esteemed UNESCO Prize for Girls and Women's Education in 2020, recognition on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list for 2022, the prestigious Champion award from the International Telecommunication Union's WSIS Prizes in 2020, and the Internet Society's 25 Under 25 Award in 2017, among others. Furthermore, she was honored as Sri Lanka's Social Entrepreneur of the Year by WIM in 2022. Currently, Meegammana holds the position of director of youth development at the Shilpa Sayura Foundation, where she spearheads the implementation of the innovative Nextgen Skills program. This program has already made a significant impact, reaching more than 3000 school and university students this year alone.