ADB offers aid for Sri Lanka’s education system

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said Wednesday it was providing an 80-million-dollar assistance to improve secondary and tertiary education in Sri Lanka.

The Manila-based bank said the assistance for the Education for Knowledge Society project will be provided in the form of a 65-million-dollar loan and a 15-million-dollar grant.

The Sri Lankan government will contribute 25.3 million dollars to the project. Under the project, 150 public secondary schools will be upgraded to offer advanced-level science and key subjects such as information and communication technology, English and technical subjects.

The grant will also fund a scholarship programme, an initiative for innovative teaching of information and communication technology, and an HIV/AIDS health education programme, the ADB said in a statement.

Ayako Inagaki, senior education specialist of the ADB’s South Asia department, said the project would help the education system in Sri Lanka adjust to the changing needs of the economy.

‘The school system is currently oriented toward conventional university education and does not teach skills and attitudes relevant to labour market needs,’ she said.

‘The school system needs to prepare and orient students to wider learning options and career paths, including technical education and vocational training programmes.’