MAS Holdings

Mar 11

“Addressing gaps in health and wellbeing for our workforce has always been an important part of our core business. We have the opportunity and ability to change, not only the access to medical care and wellbeing, but also the mindset relating to essential health and hygiene issues that stem from stereotypes, misinformation and taboos. Access to healthcare and information is essential for an empowered, motivated workforce.”

- Suren Fernando, CEO of Mas Holdings

MAS Holdings, South Asia’s largest apparel manufacturer, is expanding its 2019 commitment to reach an additional 10,000 people – for a total of 20,000 people - by 2021 through its Women Go Beyond program, which, in partnership with the Family Planning Association of Sri Lanka, offers training, information, and services on women’s health and well-being, including reproductive health, non-communicable diseases, and addressing and preventing gender-based violence.

MAS Holdings is South Asia’s largest apparel manufacturer, headquartered in Sri Lanka, with a global network of design offices, manufacturing facilities, and an integrated supply chain operating 53 manufacturing facilities in 16 countries and supplying products for global brands. MAS employs over 98,000 associates, 70 percent of whom are women.

Since 2003, MAS has implemented its Women Go Beyond program, a women’s empowerment initiative focused on four pillars - career advancement, skills development, rewarding excellence and work-life balance. Under the work-life balance pillar, the program provides health and well-being information and services covering reproductive health education, family planning, breast cancer, mental health, STDs and HIV, maternal and infant health, noncommunicable diseases, gender-based violence, and free medical check-ups, in partnership with IPPF’s Family Planning Association of Sri Lanka (FPASL) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Colombo.

In 2019, MAS Holdings committed to continue to empower its female associates in Sri Lanka through the Women Go Beyond program, in partnership with the Family Planning Association of Sri Lanka. The program includes information, services, and refresher training on women’s health and well-being to existing workers, extending the program to reach 10,000 people, including new recruits and families of workers, by 2021. In 2020, MAS Holdings announced an expansion of its commitment, to reach an additional 10,000 people - a total of 20,000 people - by December 2021.