Sri Lanka hit by brain drain
Sri Lanka is one of the worst hit in terms of brain drain with 27.5 per cent of academics leaving the country each year, the main opposition United National Party (UNP) said yesterday.
UNP MP Akila Viraj Kariyawasam who spoke during the committee stage of the Higher Education Ministry vote said the percentage was high when compared with 4.2 per cent in India; 9.2 per cent in Pakistan, 4.7 per cent in Bangladesh, 2.7 per cent in Nepal and 2.2 per cent in Maldives.
“Considering these figures there is little doubt that the situation in Sri Lanka is worse than in any other South Asian Country. This has to be corrected,” he said.
Mr. Kariyawasam said 17.4 per cent of doctors also leave the country due to various reasons, and this too is the highest in South Asia with only 3.33 per cent in India and 5.0 per cent in Pakistan. Democratic National Alliance (DNA) front-liner Anura Kumara Dissanayake said most university academics who leave the country for further education do not return mainly because they lacked financial benefits here in Sri Lanka.
“Some academics return to the country because they have a noble goal of serving the country. They either want to express their gratitude or they return because of family commitments such as looking after elderly parents. Otherwise, there is a no financial incentive to attract the academics to the university system,” Mr. Dissanayake.
Courtesy: DM Online
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Yes. most of them come and do very mean jobs like cleaning jobs where the natives do not want to do. They think just having worthless papaer qulificaton wil get a reasobnable job as in Sri Lanka. Some jobs are very dangerus like working in Petrol stations and sucurity jobs. Once I wentto Heatherow air port to catch a morning flight. It was like in Sri Lanka as all the clearning staff were speaking in Sinhalese and Tamil
In SL we have free education right up to the University. Once students get their degrees in medicine or engineering or accountancy they run-off to the West to earn higher incomes with better prospects. They have no guilt feelings about it. They have no sense of loyalty to Mother Lanka, who made it all possible for them with free education up to the university. In the West, university education cost about £9000 per year in tution fee alone. In addition, food and accommodation would make it £18000 per year. A 3 year course would set-back a British university student by £48000. Most will have to get a loan to study for a degree now. Whereas the students in SL do not realise how lucky they are! Having obtained their degree, how disloyal of them to run to the West in pursuit of a better income and prospects! I think, those who wants to do so should be made to pay the cost of their whole university education in SL, and also an extra payment, for having deprived another student of a university education, who would have been loyal and strived to use his knowledge and energy build the economy of the country out of love for Mother Lanka.