Tertiary education development

Development of the Educational Sector is a subject that has received great attention and importance in the Mahinda Chintana

Plans and objectives relating to the development of the educational sector is extensively elaborated in the Mahinda Chintana covering five pages under the caption ‘Enhancing knowledge and virtues’ with sub-headings ‘National education program’, ‘University to all program’ and ‘Livelihood skills program’. Accordingly new multi-storied school buildings have been built all over the country and at the same time reconstructing and renovating the school buildings destroyed by the Tsunami disaster in the coastal areas. Laboratories, libraries, computer centres, play grounds and swimming pools have been erected in schools throughout the country.

Village students who had never seen a computer has now become masters in computer technology and would become the main force steering the country towards a great leap forward in the future. Also, there are several on-going projects for the development - improvement of facilities in schools, Universities and other institutions of learning. These include:

In the year 2004, the amount spent by the Government on a University student was Rs 98,400. This was increased to Rs 208,000 by 2009. Students’ intake to all Universities in 2004 was 14,850. This was increased to 20,279 by 2009.

New hostels for Jaffna Univesity

Funds have been allocated and construction underway for building several University hostel buildings in line with the government’s objective to enhance facilities to University students. A three-storied hostel building at Puliyakulam at a cost of Rs 154 million, to house 250 female students of the Faculty of Agriculture, of the Jaffna University and re-construction of the damaged buildings of the Siddha Medicine Unit of the Jaffna University, as a new five-storied building at a cost of Rs 109.5 million.

Jaffna University. File photo

Wayamba University development project

Total expenditure - Rs 496 million

Building complex for the Faculty of Business Studies and Finance at a cost of Rs 165 million, girls’ hostel at Kuliyapitiya and Makandura premises at a cost of Rs 138 million, Men’s hostel for Makandura premises at a cost of Rs 69 million, staff quarters for Kuliyapitiya and Makandura premises at a cost of Rs 100 million, access road for Makandura premises at a cost of Rs 24 million, aiming to increase student intake by 200 per year and increase in the accommodation facilities for 160 women students and 80 men students.

Colombo University

Total expenditure - Rs 627 million covering expansion of the Postgraduate Institution of Medicine through constructing a new building for a Medical Education Resource Centre, with well equipped modern amenities and ample space. Construction activities include construction of a building for the Faculty of Graduate studies at a cost of Rs 405 million and construction of Medical Education Resource Centre for the Postgraduate Institute of Medicine at a cost of Rs 222 million in order to increase in student enrollment at FGS from 840 in 2008 to 1637 in 2016 and increase in postgraduate training program from 22 in 2008 to 40 in 2016.

Peradeniya University

Renovation of Akbar Hall in the Peradeniya University to provide additional hostel facilities at a cost of Rs 175 million, is being carried out.

Kelaniya University

Total expenditure - Rs 290 million. Total student population of the Medicine Faculty is around of 1,020. However only 642 (62.9 percent) of the eligible students have been provided with hostel facilities, though according to the nature of their course they need accommodation close to the faculty and teaching hospital.

Therefore construction of a hostel complex for both male and female students is urgently needed for the faculty.

Rajarata University development project

Total expenditure - Rs 816 million. The project aims to expand infrastructure facilities of the Rajarata University through construction of two building complexes for the Agriculture Faculty and Medical and Allied Science Faculty. The project will increase the student intake to 200 per year and provide sufficient space to house Audio Visual Centre, Agribusiness Centre and the Faculty Seminar Room.

South East University

The University is being developed at a cost of Rs 762 million, with funds provided by the Government and the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development. Under this project, a building complex as student hostel is being built with 6, 842 sq.m space which could accommodate 500 students. The hostel will be earmarked for 300 female students and 200 male students. Over 85 percent of the work of this hostel building has been completed.

Medical Faculty building complex

Total expenditure - Rs 1, 341 million. The project is to expand the infrastructure facilities of the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University through the construction of a five-storied building complex for establishment of Medicine Faculty and the provision of laboratory equipment. The project will be implemented by the Defence Ministry, Public Security, Law and Order.

Relocation of Institute

Arrangements have been made to relocate and develop the Institute of Technology of Moratuwa University at a cost of Rs 6,450 million. The Institute of Technology of University, Moratuwa (ITUM) is one of the leading higher education institutions in Sri Lanka, which conducts a National Diploma in Technology (NDT) in nine disciplines. It is envisaged that the relocation would enable to conduct the NDT study program more efficiently and for its further development, to increase the student intake to 1,000 per year and to introduce new disciplines into the NDT program.

Building complex for Jaffna University

Total expenditure - Rs 400 million. Since the degree programs are now carried out sharing the facilities of the Faculty of Arts, construction of a new building for the faculty has become necessary for provision of a better learning environment for 800 students and 40 academic staff and increase in the student intake to 150 per year.

Courtesy: Media Centre for National Development

To be continued