July 17, Colombo (LNW): The Cabinet of Ministers has granted its consent to the proposal on the criteria for minimum qualifications for enrolment of foreign students in 26 degree-awarding institutions in Sri Lanka, Cabinet Spokesman Transport, Highways and Mass Media Minister Dr. Bandula Gunawardhana announced. He was speaking at the weekly Cabinet media briefing held at the Government Information Department yesterday.
The Minister highlighted that five percent of the annual enrolment has been allocated for foreign students in the 17 universities under the University Grants Commission. This move aims to transform Sri Lanka into a knowledge hub by widening opportunities for foreign students to join the 26 degree-awarding institutions recognized under Section 25(A) of the University Act.
It has been identified that there is no definitive procedure to determine the minimum qualifications for university admission required by each country. To address this, the Cabinet approved the proposal presented by the Education Minister. The new criteria will consider the minimum qualification recognized for university admission by the 193 United Nations Member countries as the standard for enrolling foreign students in degree programs offered by institutions under the University Act in Sri Lanka.
Additionally, approval has been granted to validate exceptional opportunities not covered by the aforementioned qualifications through the UK NARIC institution.
