SAARC Higher Education Ministers' Conference on March 26,27

The Higher Education Ministers' Conference of the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) will be held at the Hotel Hilton, Colombo on March 26 and 27.

The Ministry of Higher Education and Ministry of Foreign Affairs are coordinating the preliminary work of this conference on the advice and direction of the SAARC Secretariat based in Katmandu, Nepal.

Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickramanayaka is expected to inaugurate the Higher Education Ministers' Conference on March 27.

All Higher Education Ministers of the SAARC region and Ministry Secretaries will attend the Colombo Conference.

The Secretaries of the Education Ministries are expected to meet at the Colombo Hilton on March 26 and decide on the procedures and the main topics that should be taken up by the Ministers on March 27.

The main highlight of the conference is the Draft Concept Paper on Higher Education that will be submitted by Minister of Higher Education Professor Wiswa Warnapala. This concept paper will set the main guidelines for the SAARC countries to implement a higher education strategy within the region to meet the challenges of the 21st century and global employment market. In its implementation, the Higher Education Ministers will take into account the budgetary allocations and socio-economic requirements of their respective countries.