Sri Lankan youth innovators have achieved a remarkable international success in Australia, earning major recognition at the 2026 Queensland 7NEWS Young Achiever Awards.
Thadus CodeLabs, co-founded by Neth Dharmasiri, secured a spot in the Top 5 for the People’s Choice Award after receiving 482 public votes, and also became a Top 5 finalist in the Connecting Communities Award category at the 7NEWS Young Achiever Awards 2026 Queensland.
The team, formed by Year 12 students, focuses on providing coding education to children in rural areas with limited or no internet access.
Their Offline Coding Platform has already supported hundreds of students in rural Sri Lanka, helping bridge the digital education gap.
The group is now planning to expand its initiative across South Asia while building new partnerships to strengthen digital learning opportunities.
Speaking after the achievement, co-founder Neth Dharmasiri expressed gratitude to the Sri Lankan community and AusLanka TV, while reaffirming his commitment to building a stronger digital future for rural youth in Sri Lanka.
