Basil tells graduate trainees at passing-out parade:
‘Prove you are an asset to the nation’
Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa on April 9 said the
government would give all assistance to the 15,596 graduates recruited
by his ministry to ensure their job security and opportunities to rise
to the highest ranks in public service. They have been trained as
leaders in the development process to make Sri Lanka poverty free
country by the year 2016.
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Economic Development Minister Basil
Rajapaksa who was the Chief Guest at the passing-out parade
greeting some of the trainee development officers following
a two-week leadership training course . |
Minister Rajapaksa gave this assurance when he addressed a meeting in
connection with the passing parade of the first batch of trainee
development officers following a two-week leadership training course
which began at 16 centres on March 28.
Explaining the government’s policy on recruiting 52,721 graduates to
the public service under the President’s guidance, the minister said if
each officer working for the Economic Development Ministry takes steps
to raise the economic level of one poor family it would be major
contribution to reach the target of reducing poverty in the country
within three years thereby making Sri Lanka the wonder of Asia.
The Economic Development Ministry made arrangements to hold two-week
residential workshops for these graduates undergoing training as
Development Officers. The 15,596 graduates – divided into three groups
of 5150 each – are being trained at 16 centres in three stages. The
first stage commenced on March 25, the second will start on April 18 and
continue till May 5. The third will be from May 18 to May 24. Each
workshop will have 150 trainees. Seventy one percent of the total number
of trainees is women while 29 percent are men.
Ceremonies in connection with the completion of training of the first
batch of graduates were held at the 15 training centres on April 9.
Several of these centres were inspected by Minister Basil Rajapaksa.
He had cordial discussions with the newly appointed officers who were
trained at the Sri Lanka Navy training school Thalathuoya, Kandy, Sri
Lanka Electrical and Mechanical Engineers Gannoruwa, Peradeniya, Sri
Lanka Signals training school Boowelikada, Kandy and National Cadet
Corps Headquarters Rantembe, Randenigala.
The aim of this training course has been to give the Development
Officers a basic knowledge of working as facilitators in implementing
rural development programmes to eradicate poverty by strengthening the
family and the village. They have been given a comprehensive knowledge
of the Divi Neguma National Programme at these workshops. The officers
will be expected to take the lead in eradicating poverty by economically
empowering the individual and thereby the family and the village in
accordance with the Mahinda Chinthana Manifesto.
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Some of the
trainee development officers at the passing-out parade |
Speaking at the ceremony marking the passing out parade, the minister
said recruiting 52,721 educated young people to the public service
simultaneously is not a burden on the state but a great asset. Therefore
it is the duty of both people’s representatives and senior state
officials to utilize the services of these new recruits for economic
progress.
During the inspection, he recalled that about a year ago a group of
graduates had met President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the Katuwana Fair and
requested their knowledge and services be utilized for national
development. Those days some people had said that if the government
recruited these young people they would become a burden on the State.
But the President considered them as an asset to the State and the
country and therefore wanted arrangements to be made for recruiting them
to the Public Service. Accordingly steps were taken to assign one
graduate officer to each of the 14,000 Grama Niladhari Divisions
island-wide.
Since our armed forces have the experience of defeating the world’s
most brutal terrorists who had naval and air power it was decided the
military were best people to give the young graduates the training
necessary to achieve targets, according to the minister. Hence he
appealed to the officers to go to the villages and prove they are indeed
an asset to the State and the country.
Commander K A Kuruppu of the Sri Lanka Navy Training School,
Thalathuoya, Lt Colonel Sanjay Pathirana of the Sri Lanka Electrical and
Mechanical Engineers Gannoruwa and Major-General Gamini Jayasundara of
the Sri Lanka National Cadet Training Centre Rantembe were among the
large crowd present at the ceremony.
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