Cabinet encourages int’l academia to invest in BoI projects

By Kelum Bandara

The Cabinet approved a policy decision last Wednesday to invite foreign universities to invest in Sri Lankan projects under the Board of Investment (BoI), Cabinet Spokesman and Higher Education Minister Bandula Gunawardane told Daily Mirror over the weekend. 

“Several universities from India, China and the United  Kingdom are willing to invest in Sri  Lanka. These renowned institutions will sit on a landmass of 700 hectares at Millaniya in Kalutara which had earlier been allocated for an industrial park by the former regime. Sri  Lanka has the potential to be an international education hub. Although these universities will predominantly cater to foreigners, limited slots will be reserved for local students to be admitted on scholarships. Some 20,000 Sri Lankans travel abroad annually for higher education which results in a loss of foreign reserves. This number keeps soaring. At times, students travel overseas without a proper understanding. This was evident at the most recent incident that unfolded in Azerbaijan where two female students died due to toxic suffocation after a fire broke out in the building they occupied. Hence, we need to avail higher education facilities to our students,” he said. 

On a different note, he said the intake of students for national universities would be increased gradually in the pursuit of making Sri  Lanka an education hub. 

“We learn in history that Chinese monk Ven. Fa–Hsien Thera arrived in Sri Lanka to study Buddhism which goes to prove that our country has always been a hub for quality education. Last year alone, Sri  Lanka issued visas for 1,600 foreigners to study here,” he said.