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EASTERN SRI LANKA, 2008-11-07
Sri Lanka has great potential for rapid economic growth, but to nurture this potential, the country needs skilled people. Currently, only 16% of Sri Lanka’s workforce has higher education and technical qualifications to fill skilled positions. To help develop the country’s workforce, USAID Sri Lanka has recently completed the reconstruction and equipping of nine new vocational educational schools which together will graduate over 2,000 students per year. These schools were funded through the Tsunami Reconstruction program and are located in the tsunami zone in the South and East of the country.
For decades, USAID has been working to support lasting development and stability in Sri Lanka, and has learnt from experience that the private sector is the engine for economic growth and employment in the country. Since the tsunami, USAID Sri Lanka has been particularly successful in securing private sector funding, even in times of disaster and as the conflict in the country lingers on.
The recently completed vocational training centers set a high standard. USAID worked closely with the private sector throughout the program to ensure their sustainability and flexibility to meet labor market needs. The private sector is likely to employ most of the graduates from the vocational training centers, and it actively participated in the development of the curricula to ensure the skills acquired by the students are in tune with the needs of the growing economy. As a result, the nine vocational centers will teach key trades currently in high demand by the Sri Lankan private sector, such as apparel, welding, electronic repair, masonry and carpentry, in addition to English language and ICT training.
The private sector identified ICT as an especially critical area of training to ensure economic growth, and ICT training has proven to be particularly popular with students. In one school in Eastern Sri Lanka, more than 500 students turned up to register for 143 slots. This huge interest amongst students is promising. ICT skills have become a requirement in Sri Lanka, as companies need employees who can use technology to help businesses compete, develop, and innovate.
“Training young people in vocational trades will help to provide good paying jobs in the near future, and will help boost both family income and the economic health of Sri Lanka as a whole,” U.S. Ambassador Robert O. Blake said at the opening of the first two schools in August 2008. “But to generate job opportunities, we need to attract private sector investment to create jobs for all those who receive training.”
USAID Sri Lanka seeks to work with the private sector in all its activities, whether to support infrastructure development and stabilization, or to promote economic prosperity. Private donors partnered with USAID to provide modern equipment for students training at the nine vocational centers. And immediately after the tsunami disaster, USAID secured private sector funding to build and equip 87 playgrounds along the tsunami damaged coast of Sri Lanka.
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