Higher Education Ministry received 40 million US dollars for its new project ‘Higher Education for the 21st Century’ (HETC) by the World Bank. The funds allocated at a meeting with Higher Education Minister Prof. W. A. Wiswa Warnapala with World Bank officials at the Ministry Auditorium on Monday.

Minister Wiswa Warnapala told The Island that the HETC project will succeed the IRQUE (Improve the Relevance and Quality of Undergraduate Education) Project.

Minister Warnapala said that recognising the critical importance of the development of higher education sector will enable Sri Lanka to make the transition from a low income country to a middle income country.

He appreciated the World Bank’s effort to develop the higher education sector in Sri Lanka.

He said that the IRQUE Project was now nearing completion. The new project HETC is organised into four components.

"The first component supports the national level development in the higher education sector, and the second component assists the development of Universities through improving the quality of educational programmes and employability of graduates. The third component supports the development of the alternative higher education sector which is the Advanced Technological Institutes (ATII) of the Sri Lanka Institute of Advanced Technological Education (SLIATE). The fourth component focuses on human resource development and capacity building of academic and managerial staff in the Universities and ATII."

Minister said that the Ministry of Finance and Planning has recommended this project having considered the need, cost effectiveness and technical feasibility.