President gets major education reform proposal

Chaminda Perera

The National Human Resources and Employment Policy (NHREP) launched by the government yesterday recognized the importance of reforming the school education sector to achieve the objective of attaining full, productive and freely chosen employment for all in Sri Lanka.

This policy framework was launched with the first copy being presented to President Mahinda Rajapaksa by National Human Resources and Employment Policy Steering Committee Chairman Senior Minister DEW Gunasekera at Temple Trees yesterday.

The Policy Framework lays emphasis on strengthening

English teaching and Trillingualism. It also recognizes the importance of providing facilities for students to learn foreign languages in secondary schools. It says that students should be provided with the option of studying a few selected subjects in the English medium within the policy of bilingual education in the secondary grades.

The NHREP has also recognized as policy to make career guidance compulsory in schools. A foundation programme for vocational and technical education targeting students who do not qualify GCE Ordinary and Advanced Level examinations have also been highlighted in the Policy Framework which was released yesterday. The reforming of curriculam of all higher education institutions to suit the world of work has also been stressed in the policy framework. This policy hinges on four pillars - Decent work promoting employment, Rights at work social protection and social dialogue as well as all the principle and aspirations of Employment Policy Convention of 1964.

This policy framework was formulated by the National Human Resources and Employment Policy Steering Committee appointed by the Cabinet after having lengthy consultation with all stakeholders including university academia with the financial assistance of the International Labour Organization.

The NHREP is guided by the vision of “Sri Lanka – the Wonder of Asia” in which all persons of working age become globally competitive and multi skilled and enjoy full decent and productive employment with higher incomes in conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity.

Senior Ministers Rathnasiri Wickremanayaka, Athauda Seneviratne, Prisons Reforms and Rehabilitation Minister Chandrasiri Gajadheera, ILO Country Director Donglin Li, senior government officials were also present.