PEYTON CROSS WRITES – With the recent release of the iPhone 6, millions of Americans are preparing for a technological upgrade. More than 9,000 miles away, Sri Lanka is also gearing up for its own IT reboot.
On September 14, the Colombo Page reported that the Sri Lankan government plans to strengthen education with the establishment of technical laboratories in several schools. According to President Mahinda Rajapaksa, the goal is not only to increase IT literacy among students, but to prepare them for the growing demands of the technological job market.
This seems to be a part of a collective agenda to boost the IT and business process outsourcing (BPO) industries in Sri Lanka. Last week, Vice Chairman of the Sri Lanka Association for Software and Services Companies (SLASSCOM) Mano Sekaram advocated for the increase of IT literacy in rural areas which would result in more job opportunities – a welcomed side-effect.
Such an investment in the IT industry is no surprise. The internet has been a constant and popular growing medium for news and entertainment in Sri Lanka. If Sri Lankan students become fluent in IT, their futures in this increasingly technological world of business are looking up.