2025-06-11
News Categories : Committee News
It was decided to appoint 6 sub-committees for new reforms in the fields of education, higher education and vocational education at the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education.
The committee was held in Parliament on 2025.06.03 Chaired by the Hon. Prime Minister and Minister of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, Hon. Deputy Minister of Education and Higher Education (Dr.) Madhura Senevirathna and Hon. Deputy Minister of Vocational Education Nalin Hewage.
Accordingly, the Sub-Committee on Education Reforms is chaired by Dr. Harini Amarasuriya and consists of Hon. Members of Parliament Anura Karunathilaka, Rohini Kumari Wijerathna, Gnanamuththu Srineshan, and Sunil Rajapaksha.
The Sub-Committee appointed to look into the Shortage of Human and Physical Resources in Schools is chaired by Dr. Kaushalya Ariyarathne and consists of Hon. Members of Parliament Mayilvaganam Jegatheeswaran, Chandana Tennakoon, Sugath Wasantha de Silva, and Darmapriya Wijesinghe.
The Sub-Committee pertaining to the Enrolment of Children to Schools for Intermediate Grades is chaired by Samanmali Gunasinghe and consists of Hon. Members of Parliament Aboobucker Athambawa, Sanjeewa Ranasinghe, and R.M. Samantha Ranasinghe.
The Sub-Committee on the Establishment of an Education Council is chaired by Mahinda Jayasinghe and consists of Hon. Members of Parliament M.L.A.M. Hizbullah, Dr. V.S. Radhakrishnan, Manjula Suraweera Arachchi and Ruwan Mapalagama.
The Sub-Committee on the Higher Education Sector is chaired by (Dr.) Madhura Senevirathna and consists of Hon. Members of Parliament (Dr) Upali Pannilage, Rajeevan Jeyachandramoorthy, Nimal Palihena and Manjula Sugath Rathnayaka.
The Sub-Committee pertaining to the Skills Education Sector is chaired by Nalin Hewage and consists of Hon. Members of Parliament D.V. Chanaka, Sivagnanam Shritharan and Imran Maharoof.
Several Members of Parliament drew the attention of the committee to issues such as ensuring that students with disabilities are not discriminated against during university admission as well as within universities, and improving their facilities; along with issues in schools in different regions of the country, including teacher shortages. The Hon. Prime Minister instructed relevant officials to take immediate action in this regard and stated that the government will intervene promptly for the necessary policy changes.
Ministers, Deputy Ministers, and Members of Parliament as well as the Chief of Staff and Secretary General of Parliamentary Chaminda Kularatne, Secretary to the Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education Nalaka Kaluwawa, Director Legislative Servises / Director Communication (Acting) M. Jayalath Perera, and Assistant Director of the Consultative Committee Secretariat Udaya Munasinghe, along with several other officials were present at this committee meeting held.
2026-07-22
The draft Terms of Reference (ToR) prepared for the Parliamentary Caucus for Open Parliament Initiative was approved recently at a meeting held in Parliament with the participation of Parliament's development partner organizations.The approval was granted during a meeting of the Caucus chaired by its Co-Chair, Hon. Member of Parliament Shanakkiyan Rajaputhiran Rasamanickam.The draft Terms of Reference was developed based on proposals and recommendations received during a workshop organized by the Caucus in recent months to gather stakeholder input for its preparation.The meeting also agreed that, following the approval of the Terms of Reference, the document would be submitted to Hon. President, and that a discussion would be held with the President on behalf of the Caucus.
2026-07-22
The Sub-Committee appointed by the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) focused its attention on the methodology, implementation timeline and coordination arrangements relating to the research study proposed for the restructuring of the Sri Lanka Institute of Advanced Technological Education (SLIATE), when it met recently, at Parliament under the Chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament Ruwan Mapalagama.During the meeting, discussions were held on the establishment of the proposed Institutional Operations Committee and a six-member Coordination Team to facilitate the implementation of the research. Attention was also focused on the proposed Mixed-Methods Design, the preparation of questionnaires and the data collection process.The Sub-Committee further reviewed the progress of obtaining public views on the restructuring of SLIATE. Matters relating to obtaining the contribution of the Human Resources and Management Information Systems (MIS) divisions for the research, the preparation of the research implementation timeline through a Gantt Chart, and the stakeholder consultations to be held with representatives of the industry sector were also considered.The programme to obtain the views of stakeholders, including Chambers of Commerce, industry associations and professional bodies, as well as the conduct of field visits to selected SLIATE institutions across the country, was also discussed.The Sub-Committee decided to proceed with the future activities of the research in accordance with the agreed timeline and to present the relevant progress reports at its next meeting.Hon. Member of Parliament Lieutenant Commander (Retired) Prageeth Madhuranga also attended the meeting.
2026-07-22
The Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) focused its attention on referring the matters revealed in relation to land misuse, financial irregularities and administrative deficiencies at the National Housing Development Authority (NHDA) to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) for a formal investigation.The matter was taken up when the Committee met recently at Parliament under the Chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament (Dr.) Nishantha Samaraweera to continue its examination of the Auditor General's Reports for the years 2022 and 2023 and to consider the remaining matters relating to the current performance of the National Housing Development Authority.During the meeting, lengthy discussions were held regarding the leasing of valuable NHDA-owned lands located at Maligawatta, Elvitigala Mawatha and Rangirigama, Dambulla to external parties at low nominal values without Cabinet approval, the use of such lands for purposes contrary to the conditions stipulated in the relevant agreements, and the failure to adequately safeguard the Authority's assets.The Committee observed that many of these transactions had been carried out in contravention of the objectives of the National Housing Development Authority and the relevant legal provisions. Accordingly, the Committee recommended that comprehensive reports on the identified irregularities be referred to the Criminal Investigation Department and the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption for the institution of appropriate legal action.The Committee also instructed the officials to expedite internal audit investigations into these matters, identify the officers responsible and initiate disciplinary action against them. Furthermore, the Committee recommended that the necessary measures be taken to strengthen asset management and internal control systems in order to prevent the recurrence of such irregularities in the future.The meeting was attended by Hon. Members of Parliament Attorney-at-Law Dayasiri Jayasekara, S.M. Marikkar, Attorney-at-Law Sujeewa Senasinghe, Mujibur Rahman, Chaminda Wijesiri, Dr. S. Sri Bavanandarajah, Sunil Rajapaksha, Thilina Samarakoon, Chandima Hettiarachchi, Asitha Niroshana Egodavithana, Ruwan Mapalagama, Jagath Manuwarna, Dinesh Hemantha, M.K.M. Aslam and Sudath Balagalla.
2026-07-21
Discussions focus on strengthening disability-inclusive legislation and policy implementationThe Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities held discussions with the United Nations Resident Coordinator and representatives of several United Nations agencies at Parliament with a view to strengthening cooperation in promoting the rights of persons with disabilities and advancing disability-inclusive legislation and policies in Sri Lanka.The meeting was held in Parliament under the Chairmanship of the Chair of the Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities, Hon. Member of Parliament Sugath Wasantha de Silva recently.Addressing the meeting, the United Nations Resident Coordinator, Mr. Marc-André Franche, commended the Parliament for establishing the Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities and emphasized the importance of treating disability inclusion as a national priority across all sectors. He reaffirmed the commitment of the United Nations to provide technical expertise and institutional support in areas including legislative reforms, accessibility, inclusive education, employment, community-based rehabilitation and strengthening national coordination.The UNICEF Representative, Ms. Begoña Arellano, highlighted the need to safeguard the rights of children with disabilities, particularly in relation to health, nutrition and education, while emphasizing the important oversight role of Parliament in ensuring the effective implementation of disability-inclusive policies.Representatives of UNFPA, UNDP, ILO and UN Volunteers also briefed the Caucus on ongoing initiatives relating to youth, education, disability data collection, employment opportunities and social inclusion.During the meeting, the Minister of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment, Hon. (Dr.) Upali Pannilage, informed the Caucus that the proposed Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill and the Sign Language Bill are currently with the Attorney General's Department and are expected to be presented to Parliament on September 2026. He further stated that measures are underway to improve accessibility in public institutions, expand employment opportunities, introduce educational grants for university students with disabilities and establish ten day-care centres for children with disabilities within this year.The Caucus also discussed future initiatives, including the preparation of disability-inclusive budget proposals by Government Ministries, the finalisation of a national disability database and the conduct of a sensitisation programme for journalists to promote a rights-based approach to disability related reporting.The meeting concluded with the Chair, Hon. Sugath Wasantha de Silva, reiterating the Caucus's core theme, "An unhindered social life," and calling for continued, unified collaboration to make an inclusive society a reality.The meeting was attended by the Deputy Co-Chairs of the Caucus, Hon. Gayantha Karunathilleka, and Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam, the Minister of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment, Hon. (Dr.) Upali Pannilage, Members of Parliament and representatives of the United Nations Resident Coordinator's Office, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNDP, ILO and UN Volunteers.
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