Invest in future of our children and country

Leadership Training Programme for the high school company programme students

Elementary Level programme students performing a role play

One of the biggest challenges our country faces is creating opportunities for our youth for a better future. Sri Lanka has over four million children in the schools, approximately six hundred thousand children are school drop outs, apart from children under six years yet to go to school, and children still to be born.

All these children will have to be groomed and given opportunities for a better future. It could also require more housing and infrastructure facilities.

With our education system not being oriented to meet the demands of today’s world the challenge is even more. With over 500,000 children sitting for the Ordinary Level, and 160,000 for the Advanced Level Examination only 17,000 get in to the Local Universities.

The majority of them are hoping for Government jobs and unemployed graduates have to carry out street protest demanding Government jobs.

The challenge of providing opportunities for the youth is not only the responsibility of the Government but of all political parties to commit themselves to create national education policies.

The business community, professionals and civil society have an important role to play in this regard.

The children whose parents are affluent, who can afford or make many sacrifices find ways of educating their children overseas at a great cost.

This often creates a brain drain with such children opting to even stay abroad due to lack of opportunities in our country leaving many parents alone in the sunset of their lives.

“We always say that the children are our biggest asset but we need to provide them with great support and groom them to become competent citizens to face many challenges of their future, otherwise they will become our biggest threat.

Basically today we are living on a human volcano”, President of Young Entrepreneurs Sri Lanka Patrick Amarasinghe, who is now committed towards social entrepreneurship after his business and trade chamber involvement said.

He said it is unfortunate that education has become a business leaving many children with various degrees and no practical experience.

“With my experience and many contacts with the business community a common complaint of many employers is that they cannot find the necessary staff with the right qualifications and experience, although there are many with several certificates,” he said.

Junior Achievement Worldwide (JA) was founded in 1919 in USA which is the Worlds Largest and Fastest growing organisation dedicated to grooming and educating children about practical business, economic and entrepreneurship and is presently operated in 119 countries all over the world.

Young Entrepreneurs Sri Lanka (YESL) a successful Member Nation and a franchise holder of JA commenced a decade ago.

This was incorporated as a non-profit and non political organisation by guarantee. YESL launched the program in nine National and Provincial schools with 1600 children and has now covered over 460 schools and 42,500 children in urban and rural areas.

“We are the biggest and fastest growing non profit organisation dedicated to the economic empowerment of young people through entrepreneurship, financial literacy and work readiness,” Amarasinghe said.

YESL is aiming at reaching 10 per cent of the total school population by 2013 and to increase funding and resources particularly from private sector to ensure program growth and expansion.

The educational material are researched and tested and upgraded continuously by experts in the field.

JA/YESL programmes are approved by the Ministry of Education and offered free to the school children.

The programme varying from Elementary to Upper school level helps young people tackle some of the life’s biggest challenges by preparing them to succeed in a global economy.

In fact, these programmes have made young people around the world to be work force ready or entrepreneurs, teaching them how to make and manage money.

“Today’s young people are facing demanding challenges, poverty, lack of opportunity disfranchisement and apathy.

And we don’t want the children to be a burden on the society or the country,” Amarasinghe said.

JA/YESL programmes link students within the country and with different countries, cultures and religions together.

This is and experience of a life time.

They will make new friends among peers committed to a common objective.

The Programmes teach children, business skills and prepares them for the demands of the market.

“The most important fact is that this programme focuses on the practical aspect of business with its hands-on-activities” commented Manager - Branding and Development, Lashica Abeywickrama, who has gone through the High School Company Programme and now has joined YESL as a member of the staff.

She also said the Company Programme has given her a thorough knowledge on business staring from setup, issuing shares and up to paying dividends and liquidating a company apart from building self confidence, team spirit and better values.

She has witnessed the development in many students in the YESL programmes both in urban and rural schools.

Every year students get opportunities of participating in world wide JA programmes.

YESL students also have the opportunity of sitting for the Cambridge University Young Enterprise international Examination.

YESL invites business community and civil society leaders to be Mentors for the programme being a role model and inspiration by sharing business and life experience. A mentorship is a memorable and

YESL is funded by businesses, foundations and individuals. “We invite the business community to get involved by investing in the future of our children” Amarasinghe said.

Abeywickrama added that the investment in return will benefit the businesses providing well trained employees.

“This programme should be a part of the businesses’ CSR projects where they assist in grooming the youth,” she said.