Tag Archives: Sri Lanka

According to collegesanduniversitiesinusa, Sri Lanka has a long and rich educational history, with formal education dating back to the early 19th century. The first schools to be established in Sri Lanka were missionary schools, which were set up by the British colonial government. These schools provided basic education to both Sinhalese and Tamil students and served as a means of introducing English language education to the island. By the late 19th century, state-run schools had been established in order to provide more comprehensive education to Sri Lankans. In 1921, the Donoughmore Commission recommended that all children should receive free and compulsory primary education, which led to an increase in school attendance across the island. In 1947, Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) became an independent nation and a new system of free public education was introduced. This system included primary school for ages 6-14, secondary school for ages 14-18 and higher education at universities or specialized institutions such as teacher training colleges or technical colleges. Since independence, Sri Lanka has made great strides in improving its educational system, with literacy rates increasing from around 50% in 1948 to 97% in 2017. The country also implemented a number of reforms aimed at improving access to quality education for all children regardless of gender or socio-economic background. This included measures such as free textbooks for primary students, free tuition fees at higher levels of study and increased investment in teacher training programs. All these efforts have helped make Sri Lanka one of the most literate countries in South Asia today. In 2009, Sri Lanka was a nation in transition. The country had recently emerged from over two decades of civil war and was transitioning to a more stable political environment. The end of the civil war saw the election of President Mahinda Rajapaksa in 2005 and his subsequent re-election in 2010. During this period, Sri Lanka’s geopolitics shifted towards a greater emphasis on economic growth and development, while maintaining its traditional ties with India. The Rajapaksa government’s main foreign policy objectives included promoting economic growth, increasing access to global markets and fostering closer ties with India. In 2009, Sri Lanka signed free trade agreements with both India and Pakistan which allowed for increased bilateral trade between the countries. The Rajapaksa government also sought to improve diplomatic relations with other nations in the region such as China, Japan and South Korea. In 2009, Sri Lanka hosted the Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC) summit which included representatives from all these countries as well as Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia. This summit helped foster stronger diplomatic ties between member countries which provided an important platform for further economic cooperation between them. In addition to its efforts to foster closer relations with regional powers, Sri Lanka also sought to strengthen its ties with the United Nations (UN). In 2009, the UN appointed Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Sri Lanka who worked closely with the government to ensure compliance with international human rights standards. This was an important step forward towards establishing a more stable political environment within the country. Check naturegnosis for Sri Lanka in 2001.