Press briefing of Cabinet Decision taken on 2018-02-20

Securing the funds required for the General Education Modernization (GEM) Project

- Even though there is a considerable progress in the field of education in Sri Lanka in the recent decade, in terms of learning outcomes in key subjects, the country shows regional variations. It has also been identified that further attention is required in better orienting the General Education System to enhance the socio‑emotional skills such as problem solving and reaching targets, regulation, confidence, teamwork and improving ethics and productivity that are important for students to become good and productive citizens in the modern global economy.

As such, it has been planned to implement a new project named 'General Education Modernization Project' to further strengthen the education sector based on the experiences and knowledge gained from 'Transforming School Education Centered on the Foundation of a Knowledge Hub Project' and with the educational system of the developed countries. Accordingly, the proposal made by Hon. Ranil Wickremasinghe, the Prime Minister in his capacity as the Minister of National Policies and Economic Affairs, to conduct loan negotiations for securing funds for a sum of US$ 100 million from the International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank and to enter into the relevant loan agreements for the implementation of the said project, was approved by the Cabinet.