Sri Lanka

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An island nation of over 22 million people (World Bank, 2022), Sri Lanka is located off the southern coast of India and has high literacy rates and a strong network of non-governmental organisations.

COL’s work in Sri Lanka is primarily in the areas of girls’ and women’s education and training, higher education, teacher education, lifelong learning for farmers, and technology-enabled learning and benefits from programmes under the aegis of the Commonwealth Educational Media Centre for Asia (CEMCA). Learners from Sri Lanka are also participating in COL’s free, open online courses and benefitting from other available resources.

Participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal education and training in the previous 12 months, 15-64 years old¹
12.8%		13.6%
Female (2019)		Male (2019)

Completion rate, lower secondary education¹
n/a		n/a
Female		Male

Gross enrolment ratio for tertiary education for the school year ending in 2021¹
27%		17.3%
Female		Male

Proportion of teachers with the minimum required qualifications in secondary education¹
82.1%		79.6%
Female (2020)		Male (2020)

1. UNESCO Institute for Statistics Data Centre, retrieved in June 2021

Highlights

Online workshops were held for the vocational trainers and marginalised youth on employability skills and spoken English.
Video tutorial in Sinhala developed on ‘Sustainable Farming Techniques’ for bamboo cultivators.
A strategy for digitising learning resources, focusing on climate-responsive sustainable livelihoods and food security has been developed.
Professor Shironica P. Karunanayaka, The Open University of Sri Lanka was appointed COL Chair for the period 2023 to 2026.
2,643 women and girls trained in Sri Lanka.

Partners

Partnerships are fundamental to COL’s work. Strategic partnerships allow COL to broaden its reach and engage at global, regional and national levels, while implementation partners support COL’s work in communities and institutions across Commonwealth Member States. Partners include multilateral organisations, regional bodies, national governments, government agencies, foundations, civil society organisations, public and private (not-for-profit) institutions and the private sector. COL partnerships assist in improving and extending teaching and learning services to people in the developing Commonwealth.

COL’s partners in Sri Lanka include:

Ministry of Education
Centre for Media and Information Literacy (CMIL)
National Institute of Education (NIE)
National Library of Sri Lanka
Open University of Sri Lanka (OUSL)
Tertiary and Vocational Education Commission (TVEC)
Together with Youth
University Grants Commission
Women’s Development Centre (WDC)
Wayamba Technical College, Sri Lanka Youth Ltd

Key Contacts

BOARD OF GOVERNORS

Honourable Dr Susil Premajayantha, MP
Minister of Education

Focal Point

Mrs Hasini Thalagala
Director of Education
(Foreign Agencies and External Affairs)
Ministry of Education

Notable Mention

Professor Uma Coomaraswamy, COL Honorary Fellow

Professor Shironica Karunanayaka, Honorary COL Adviser

Dr Tara de Mel, former member of COL’s Board of Governors

Mr H.M. Sirisena, former member of COL’s Board of Governors

Professor D.S. Wijeyesekera, former member of COL’s Board of Governors

Literacy rate (2020)¹
91.6%		93.3%
Female, Adult (15+)		Male, Adult (15+)

Economic Activity – Labour Forces Participation (2020)¹
36.2%		77.7%
Female, Ages 15-64		Male, Ages 15-64

Political Decision Making (2020)¹
5.3%
Share of seats held by women in national parliament

Life expectancy (2023)¹
79.8		73.8
Female		Male

1. COL gender country profile October 2023

67	140
Individuals using the internet (%)¹	Mobile-cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants¹

11	87
Fixed-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants¹	Active mobile-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants¹




1. International Telecommunication Union (ITU), retrieved in May 2023.

Sri Lanka

Highlights

Partners

Key Contacts

BOARD OF GOVERNORS

Focal Point

Notable Mention

More Information

News

Reports

Publications and Resources

Country Data Sources