Empowering Sri Lanka's youth: Building globally recognised career pathways beyond university

THIS article serves as Part II of the series originally published in the Daily FT under the title “Reimagining Sri Lanka’s university system.” I collaborated with a fellow civil engineer who graduated from the University of Moratuwa in 1987 and has since charted an impressive career path in the international corporate sector via the Asia Pacific Region. He brings a wealth of insight into the vocational training landscape in both Singapore and Australia. He also shares valuable perspectives drawn from his role on the External Advisory Committee for the practical undergraduate degree programs at Western Sydney University.

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tional, and globally recognised alternative.

By drawing on the proven strategies of Australia’s Technical and Further Education (TAFE) system and Singapore’s Institute of Technical Education (ITE), Sri Lanka can reimagine its education ecosystem to empower youth with practical skills, international mobility, and economic resilience.

Rethinking education: From “white collar” to “new collar”