Sri Lanka has great opportunity to become major destination for fee-paying foreign students

If Sri Lanka seizes the opportunity to benefit from this it will be a great boost to the local economy

In the past

A lot of people locally and internationally are not cognisant that education played a major part in the life and culture of Sri Lankan civilisation, historically dating back to the late 6th century BCE (Before the Common Era).

The pre-colonial system of Buddhist temple-based learning was maliciously dismantled under British colony rule from 1796, which precipitated the decline of traditional Buddhist education on the island. The British colonial government did not heavily invest in public education, leading to inconsistencies in the quality of education in different parts of the country. With significant disparities based on region, social class, and access to missionary schools, which were often better equipped and provided higher quality education than the limited Government-run schools, particularly in rural areas.

The British focused upon developing cash crops which could be exported from Sri Lanka. For that reason, there was no need for high quality education. They needed a large unskilled labour force and a few loyal managerial types rather than an educated workforce. 

Due to this impediment under colonial rule, they outsourced to the Christian missionaries the work of providing basic educational needs, heavily reliant on the Catholic and Protestant missionaries education system. Often with better facilities and teaching standards compared to pre-independence colonial government schools. 

In 1943 significant reforms were introduced by C.W.W. Kannangara. The introduction of free and compulsory primary education in the mid-20th century marked a significant improvement in access to education for many Sri Lankans, paving the way for a more equitable system post-independence. Sri Lanka’s literacy rate sharply increased following its independence, with a notable rise in the number of schools and literacy rates occurring particularly after the implementation of free education policies, leading to a high literacy rate that is considered one of the highest in Asia to date. In the early period, Sri Lanka outperformed Singapore significantly, this development is largely attributed to the post-independence era, with significant improvements and investment seen throughout the latter half of the 20th century (particularly in the years 1951 onwards).

The present

The overseas student market is growing at a phenomenal rate. It is estimated that there are around 13 million international students. According to recent estimates, the global overseas student market is expected to reach a value of $ 500 billion in the next five years.

The overall trend for the overseas student market has been experiencing consistent growth, with a considerable rise in the number of students studying outside their home countries over the past two decades. With a notable increase in the number of international students studying abroad, particularly from countries like China and India. Although recent trends indicate a potential slowdown in growth due to factors like changing immigration policies and economic volatility across key sending countries.

The United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia, for instance, have seen a decline due to authoritarian visa regulations. Racial tensions are also on the rise which affects the safety and security of overseas students. Currently, in the Western hemisphere there an overwhelming anti-Chinese connotation which is hampering and restricting students from studying in the West. The overwhelming prevailing student killings through gun violence and using narcotics in America.

To illustrate this point it will be good to look at a case study of the American system, that will highlight the draconian way things are done, which prevents overseas students from studying in the country. For an overseas student studying in America, key restrictions include: being required to maintain full-time enrolment at a Student and Exchange Visitor Program-approved institution, limited on-campus work hours during the academic year, need to demonstrate sufficient funds for living expenses, not being able to attend public elementary or middle school, and potential limitations on travel outside the US depending on visa type; all the while adhering to the rules of the F-1 student visa (the most common for academic studies) which requires maintaining a residence abroad and demonstrating intent to return home after completing studies.

Is America a safe place for overseas students to be studying with overwhelming statistics showing it’s not? 

Mass shootings in American schools are often attributed to a complex mix of factors including easy access to firearms, mental health issues, bullying, social isolation, family dysfunction, and a culture that sometimes glorifies violence, with some experts highlighting the particularly high rate of gun ownership in the US as a contributing factor to the problem; these issues can lead individuals, particularly troubled youth, to carry out violent acts in schools in America. 

Incomprehensive number of school shootings in 2022, there were 46 school shootings, which was the highest number since the Columbine school shooting massacre. The 2021–2022 school year had the highest number of school shootings and casualties. 

Nauseating number of deaths in 2000 to 2022, was 515 students and staff died in school shootings. Horrifying number of injuries in 2000 to 2022, 1,161 students and staff were injured in school shootings.

Drug abuse in American schools is at an alarming level according to the statistics by the National Centre for Drug Abuse Statistics in America. 2.08 million or 8.33% of 12- to 17-year-olds nationwide with 11.89 million 18- to 25-year-olds using drugs. 4,777 Americans aged 15 to 24 years old died of an overdose of illicit drugs in one year. 11.2% of overdose deaths are aged 15 to 24 years.

The future

Due to the overwhelming evidence that I have presented here, there’s a strong possibility Sri Lanka would be a desirable destination for students seeking to pursue their studies in the English medium both at State universities and at private institutions.

According to the distinguished former Ambassador to China, who also served as the Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations, Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Sri Lanka and was the one-time Secretary-General of the Secretariat for Coordinating the Peace Process, Dr. Palitha T.B. Kohona, who kindly provided insights to this possibility that Sri Lanka could benefit from. 

In our discussions, Dr. Palitha T.B. Kohona stated that thousands of East Asian students go to study in the West due to the marketability of English language qualifications in the domestic job market and also because it was the fashion. 

China in particular sends a large number of young students overseas. However, access to the US, UK, Canada and Australia is becoming increasingly restricted, especially to Chinese students. Visas are delayed, and students are subjected to intrusive restrictions. Parents are also increasingly reluctant to send children to the West to study.

Due to the above consequences a large number of students, literally tens of thousands, study in Malaysia and Indonesia but are anxious about the domestic Islamic culture. The quality of education and the accents are a great hindrance, being provided in the host nations.

Unquestionably this opens up a great opportunity for Sri Lankan educational institutions to attract fee-paying foreign students to study in Sri Lanka.

Due to the high level of English being spoken in Sri Lanka, there’s an excellent opportunity for overseas students to study and have a good comprehension as English is widely articulated all over the island.

Culturally Sri Lanka is broadly compatible and eminently liveable, happily fulfilling expectations.

It is affordable and safe to live in and the people are welcoming, unlike the Western nations.

A ripple effect will be created financially for Sri Lanka. Income generators from overseas students on the island primarily come from overseas students spending on living expenses, tuition fees, and part-time jobs, which include areas like housing, food, transportation, entertainment, local businesses, tutoring services, language schools, and freelance work; essentially contributing to the local economy through their regular spending habits while studying in Sri Lanka could become a major source of new revenue and this will contribute financially to the prosperity of the island from fee-paying foreign students.

The tailored courses in the English medium could be developed and this will contribute to international understandings and bilateral relationships and advance Sri Lanka’s current position substantially. Through financial flow, the effect will benefit the whole educational infrastructure. 

It has become a very profitable business for teaching overseas students, for instance:

a) According to new statistics, America generated, $ 80 billion from 1.1 million international students who contributed to the American economy and supported over 400,000 jobs.

b) In the United Kingdom, it is estimated to benefit somewhere around $ 50 billion from overseas students.

c) Overseas students in Canada contributed approximately $ 40 billion to the Canadian economy through their spending on tuition, accommodation, and other expenses, representing a significant boost to the country’s GDP. 

To execute such a program there has to be full cooperation of the private and the public sectors, their efforts strategically and create the right architectural framework to establish and promote for instance student compatibility and a welcoming environment, actively promoted through the embassies around the world.

Foreign universities could be incentivised to establish offshore campuses in Sri Lanka. This will encourage Sri Lankan students themselves to stay and study in Sri Lanka.  

If Sri Lanka seizes the opportunity to benefit from this it will be a great boost to the local economy; if they fail to do so then again Sri Lanka will be left behind. To prevent history from repeating itself, after gaining its independence from Britain, Sri Lanka was more advanced educationally compared to Singapore but look where Singapore is now and Sri Lanka’s poles apart.

(The writer is an aficionado and Chairman of International Consultants.)