The Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology (SLIIT) hosted the SLIIT Research Symposium (SRS) for the fifth consecutive year on December 22, in conjunction with the institution's 10th anniversary celebrations.

MD Professor Lalith Gamage, Chancellor Professor S. Karunaratne, Prof. Jagath C. Rajapakshe, Professor of Computer Engineering, Director, Bio-informatics Research Centre, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore and Dr. Koliya Pulasinghe, Dean Postgraduate Studies and Research.

The theme of the symposium, 'ICT for National Development and Integration', aptly inspired by the government's decision to dedicate the year 2009 to ICT (Information and Communication Technology), is a significant landmark in addressing the rising issues within a nation recovering from the aftermath of a war spanning almost three decades. The symposium acted as an open forum for academy and industry professionals to discuss IT-related issues and challenges pertaining to the fields of industry, infrastructure development, education, and employment and social integration in Sri Lanka. Many prominent researchers in the field, including undergraduate and postgraduate researchers, were provided with an opportunity to present their research papers to a wider audience, making available a vital knowledge-base to an ever expanding IT market.

The SRS '09, as in the past, placed focus on potential and inventive research frontiers by encouraging the submission of innovative and high quality manuscripts, selectively chosen with regard to their relevance to issues which need to be addressed in Sri Lanka. Of particular significance were publications targeting progress within the agricultural and medical sectors in rural areas. Together with the documentation of the proceedings of the SRS, the research papers were published with the aim of broadening the horizon of the ICT discipline in the country.

SLIIT, the foremost and largest degree awarding Institute in the field of Information Technology in Sri Lanka takes great pride in producing highly qualified IT professionals in the country who are geared to face the challenges of the IT industry both locally and globally. The institution further takes on a number of initiatives in fostering and promoting research within the domain of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Sri Lanka.