In addition to the free education provided to school and university students, some 90 per cent of vocational training courses are conducted free of charge under the present government, Deputy Minister of Skills Development and Vocational Training Karunarathna Paranawithana said.
Addressing the media in Colombo last morning (09), the Deputy Minister said that over the past few years, the number of students enrolled for vocational training courses has increased.
“When this Government came into power in 2015, we decided that in parallel to free education the students receive, they should also receive free vocational training. Although teacher training and nursing training are provided free of charge, vocational training wasn’t. At present, over 90 per cent of NVQ level courses are given to students for free, whereas for some weekend courses a fee is charged,” Paranawithana said.
The Deputy Minister further said that the Government has also built a number of new vocational training centres across the country.
“We received a grant of Rs. 8.4 million from Germany and we have built a German Technical Training Institute (SLGTI) in Kilinochchi. We are also planning to build another SLGTI in Matara in the near future,” he added.
(Republic Next)