Invest Northern Ireland (INI) Business Delegation to Sri Lanka Include Thirteen Companies & Representatives from Two Universities

01st April 2011, www.dailynews.lk

Thirteen companies and representatives from two universities are taking part in the first business mission from Northern Ireland to Sri Lanka.

Members of the Invest Northern Ireland (INI) delegation will be exploring business opportunities with Sri Lankan companies and government officials in Colombo from April 2 to 5. Most of the companies and the two universities are new to Sri Lanka and are keen to develop long-term relationships in their respective sectors.

British High Commission Trade and Investment Head Janet Ford who recently visited Belfast to promote opportunities in Sri Lanka to UK companies, said, “There is currently a substantial amount of UK business interest in Sri Lanka, given the Government of Sri Lanka’s plans for regeneration of the economy and the outlook for further growth across all major business sectors. This first trade mission from Belfast is evidence of that. “

INI’s Asia team Head Noel Johnston, commenting on the mission, said, “We are keen to develop relationships with Sri Lanka across a range of business activities including trade, technology transfer and partnerships.

One of Northern Ireland’s most successful IT companies, Aepona, already has an existing investment in Sri Lanka, tapping into Sri Lanka’s growing technology talent pool to support its Northern Ireland operations and help it compete in international markets.

There are clearly mutual business opportunities, and we are keen to build on those relationships as Sri Lanka invests in modernising its economy.”

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Incentives to Private Sector to Invest in University Research in Sri Lanka. Professionals Overseas Express Willingness to Come Back

31st January 2011, www.dailymirror.lk, By Kelum Bandara

The government has decided to give income tax concessions to private sector companies that invest in research work at local state universities in Sri Lanka, officials said yesterday.
Higher Education Ministry secretary Dr. Sunil Jayantha Navaratne told Daily Mirror yesterday that any university could now undertake research in various fields under private sector sponsorship.

Dr. Navaratne said that the public sector had insufficient funds for investment in this sector and, therefore, the country had lost many opportunities to introduce new services and products through research.

He said, “If a company invests Rs.10 million, twice that amount would be deducted from their income tax. Companies take a risk in making such investments. Research can sometimes end in failure or take years to produce results.”

“In other countries, research is carried out through public-private partnership. The transistor radio was also developed through a similar system. The private sector can invest in university research and enjoy this tax benefit,” he said.

He also said that 10-15 university lecturers who were working overseas had expressed their willingness to come back, after the government’s announcement that they could return despite having violated the conditions of the bonds they had entered into with their respective universities.

“I have received letters from 10-15 lecturers living abroad,” he said.

Asked about the facilities to be given to such lecturers, he said, “They can send their children to quality schools here. We will also be able to pay them better in the future.”

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Sri Lanka Invites Recognized Universities to Set up Branches

20th October 201, www.dailynews.lk, By Sanjeevi Jayasuriya

Sri Lanka is spending Rs 15 billion to Rs 20 billion annually on foreign education, Higher Education Minister S B Dissanayake said.

“The country could save this amount of foreign exchange with the establishment of foreign university branches in Sri Lanka. This will enable the students to secure internationally accepted qualifications locally,” Dissanayake said.

The education system in Sri Lanka will be classified into three categories under State, Non-State and Professional. Strategies will be introduced to restructure the process to attract more foreign universities to the country,” the Minister said.

“The country invites world-recognized universities to establish branches and discussions are successful in this regard. Sri Lanka will become a quality higher education centre and the Government will provide more facilities and a conducive environment,” he said.

The Sri Lanka-Australia-New Zealand Business Council organized a presentation on Government policy on higher education and education for the future which was held yesterday.

Sri Lanka hopes to maintain the free education system regardless of the policies introduced. Sri Lanka is poised to become a knowledge hub in Asia and the Government is working towards this goal.

“There is a need to regularize and streamline higher educational institutions. Six universities will be made world class universities meeting the expected standards. We are already in line to make Sri Lanka an education centre. The country will be in a position to export knowledge. The learning centred education will be converted to research oriented education,” the Minister said.

The Government is carrying out an ambitious education reform agenda. Australia will support Government efforts to provide education. It has allocated $ 50 million for development including education, Australia’s High Commissioner in Colombo Kathy Klugman said.

Sri Lanka to Allow Private Universities. A Regulatory Agency to Monitor Liberalized Tertiary Education

17th June 2010, www.lankabusinessonline.com

Sri Lanka's president Mahinda Rajapaksa has backed a plan to liberalize university education and set up a mechanism to monitor and evaluate the quality of foreign and local higher education, an official said.

A proposal for a 'National policy framework on higher education and technical and vocational education' to revamp higher education, has been drawn up by Sri Lanka's policy-making National Education Commission (NEC).

"The commission wants to establish non-state degree awarding institutions," Dayantha Wijeyesekera, chairman of Sri Lanka Tertiary and Vocational Education Commission and member of the apex National Education Commission told reporters.

"The President has also given his consent, the President was happy with our proposals"

Since 1978, Sri Lanka's president has sweeping powers, which are controversial and there have been calls to trim them. The president won a second term in a landslide victory in January and the ruling coalition was returned to power in parliamentary polls in April.

Sri Lanka has had a state monopoly in degree awarding and attempts to break it grip have been resisted by the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, a Marxist-National party which has a strong grip in the state university system.

At present Sri Lanka's higher education system is limited to 15 state controlled universities and a handful of cross-border institutes which award foreign degrees and national vocational qualification institutions, Wijeyesekera said.

"I don't think that it (opening high education to private universities) can be limited to one discipline," Wijeyesekera said.

"It will be open to all disciplines."

Liberalizing higher education would allow more opportunities for Sri Lankan students to gain a university degree.

At present Sri Lankan universities can only accommodate less than 10 percent of students who sit for advance level high

school exams.

The crisis in the universities which are 'free' and funded by people's money reached a peak in 2004 when tens of thousands of

graduates had to be given state jobs with lifetime pensions at tax payer expense.

He said the NEC has proposed to the government to set up a new body which will monitor and evaluate the quality of academia

and syllabi in state and private higher education institutions.

"We have proposed to establish a national quality assurance centre (NQAC) to cover all areas of higher education and

technical and vocational education in Sri Lanka," Wijeyesekera said.

"The president has agreed to this proposal as well."

Education in Sri Lanka now comes under three separate ministries, who will have to take the proposals forward.

"We don't have any authority to implement this, it's up to the respective ministries to do that," Wijeyesekera said.

"We want to implement this as soon as possible."