Meta has launched its Small Business Growth Academy in Sri Lanka in partnership with Roar AdX, offering entrepreneurs training in digital marketing and guidance on using online platforms to reach more customers.
The launch was held under the patronage of Deputy Minister of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development Chathuranga Abeysinghe, and brought together government officials, Meta representatives and local entrepreneurs who work with Roar AdX, Hiru News reported.
What the programme covers
The academy is designed to help entrepreneurs apply digital and AI-powered tools to their businesses. Training covers online advertising, Reels, WhatsApp for Business, and reaching customers in overseas markets.
The launch session paired instruction on Meta’s platforms with accounts from business owners who have built their brands through Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. Participants were also able to meet Meta representatives directly to raise the obstacles they face and hear about forthcoming platform tools.
Part of a regional rollout
The Sri Lankan launch is one instalment of a wider Meta programme being rolled out across 12 markets in the Asia-Pacific region. It has already been introduced in Pakistan, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Roar AdX is Meta’s advertising platform partner in Sri Lanka. The stated division of labour is that Meta supplies platform knowledge while Roar AdX contributes familiarity with local advertisers — customer expectations, the budgets small businesses actually work with, and the commercial conditions shaping how they use digital marketing.
For small firms operating with limited time and money, the filing argues, the practical skills at stake are narrow but consequential: identifying a relevant audience, responding to customer enquiries, and measuring whether advertising spending produced anything.
Not disclosed
The report does not say how many entrepreneurs will take part, whether the training is free, how long the programme runs, or when further sessions will be held. No cost or investment figure is attached to the Sri Lankan rollout, and Meta’s regional programme timetable is not given.
This is a company announcement rather than independently verified reporting, and no other verified newsroom had carried the launch at the time of writing.
