Foreign university branches to accommodate AL students unable to enter local campuses
View(s):Two universities from Britain and Singapore will soon sign agreements with the Board of Investment (BOI) to set up colleges here, a top official said.
This is under the new investment promotion strategy of promoting foreign investment initially in the education sector.
M.M.C. Ferdinando, acting Secretary of the new Ministry of Investment Promotion told the Business Times that the University of Lancashire in Britain and Raffles University College in Singapore will be soon entering into agreements with the Board of Investment (BOI) to establish two university colleges in Merigama and Negombo, respectively.
The first one with Raffles Education Corporation would be signed next week.
He said “our aim is to bring in quality foreign universities to the country without affecting the local university system”. These university colleges or foreign university branches will not offer medical degree courses, he said adding that their aim is to mainly reduce the number of local students going abroad to pursue university education, spending millions of dollars. With the expansion of international schools, and more and more GCE (A/L) students being left high and dry without further educational or vocational training prospects, and without university education opportunities, the gravity of this issue was badly felt by parents.
Unlike a few decades back, the present-day society is very concerned about this issue.
Therefore, the newly set up investment promotion ministry has taken a decision to focus its attention on this matter, he added. The expenditure on GCE (AL) private tuition and unbearable competition to enter the universities have resulted in a frustrated Sri Lankan society and it has affected the normal social and family life of parents and their children, a senior educationist who wished to be anonymous told BusinessTimes. He argued that that there is no 100 per cent free education in Sri Lanka at present.
School admission charges, private tuition fees in almost all the subjects from primary to secondary school level, facilities fees, various other fees and expenses have to be incurred by parents under the current free education system.
On the other hand the quality of education has declined. Students, especially those eager to enter university, have to depend heavily on paid private tuition. This is evident in even primary and other secondary levels of education.
Further, to some extent both primary and secondary education systems have been privatised through private schools and international schools.
However, no such private institutions have been established in a regulated manner to grant university degrees.
Therefore, disgruntled students leave the country annually to follow university education in a foreign country, he said.
Minister of Investment Promotion Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said that at least 12,000 students leave the country annually for foreign university education utilising over US$ 400 million in foreign exchange per year.
He revealed that the ministry is in the process of evaluating foreign university and education institute project proposals focusing attention on IT, commerce, accountancy, management, designing, mass communication and technology degree awarding institutions to empower local student to maximise their potential in their lives and careers.
They will be able to obtain a foreign degree without going overseas and paying a lesser amount, he added.
Meanwhile the JVP-led Inter University Student Federation has accused the government of instigating a secret plan to increase the number of students qualified in the commerce stream by preparing easy question papers in 2012 GCE Advanced Level examination with aim of forcing them to enter foreign universities.
Its Convener Sanjeewa Bandara said that there was an extraordinary increase in the number of commerce stream students who excelled in the GCE AL examination. Most of these students will have to further their higher education in foreign universities or education institutes either here or overseas.
The government’s move to expedite the setting up of foreign university branches in the country may be aimed at attracting these students who cannot be accommodated in local universities due to lack of space and other facilities, he alleged.
Mr. Bandara said that parents of these students will somehow find money even by mortgaging their property for their children to get a university degree.
He said that this may be one of the reasons behind the government’s move to promote foreign investment in the education sector Considering the number of people per universities in other countries, Sri Lanka needs to establish a minimum of new 40 universities, Mr. Bandara said.
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