APIIT to expand facilities with World Bank assistance

APIIT - Sri Lanka, a leading higher education institute offering British degrees in Computing/ IT and Business Management, has been awarded a grant amounting to Rs.22 million under the World Bank Project for ‘Improving Relevance and Quality of Undergraduate Education (IRQUE) in Sri Lanka.

The IRQUE Project is an initiative of the government of Sri Lanka to steer the tertiary education sector to produce graduates with the competencies required for Sri Lanka's economic and social development. The Quality Enhancement Fund of this Project provides grants to higher education institutes to enhance the quality and relevance of undergraduate study programmes and thereby increase the employability of graduates. Grants are awarded through a highly competitive process of selection.  Of the 10 project proposals submitted by private higher education institutes and professional bodies in 2005, only the proposal from APIIT to improve its facilities has been accepted for funding.

Mr. Syed Rehan, who spearheaded the development of the APIIT proposal, explained that the selection process had been highly competitive and comprised rigorous scrutiny of the project proposal and site visits to inspect the facilities and the operation of the Institute. This was followed by a quality assessment of the BSc (Hons) Computing Degree Programme, the study programme that is being funded. We are indeed proud of our achievement of being the only private higher education institute to secure a grant from this World Bank Project and this is the result of our commitment to provide students with superior learning opportunities, added Mr. Rehan.

Dr. Athula Pitigala Arachchi, CEO of APIIT Sri Lanka, stated that he was proud of the recognition by the government of APIIT’s contribution to higher education and manpower development in the country.  He said that the grant will supplement a sum of Rs. 40 million earmarked for investment by APIIT over the next 3 years to improve and expand its facilities.  These investments will guarantee that APIIT facilities for teaching/ learning are maintained at the cutting edge.

The announcement of the grant and the prestige associated with it comes at a crucial time in APIIT’s development, added Ms. Prashanthi Rajaratnam, Corporate Services Manager. We have emerged as the indisputable leader among private tertiary education providers in terms of attracting the largest number of applications from students to follow Computing/ IT and Business Management degree programmes. The high demand for the British Degrees offered at APIIT is clearly evidenced by the number of students registering for the programmes; nearly 225 students registered for the September 2005 intake alone.  With intakes in January and May, our annual student enrolment now exceeds 400.  The grant will help us to expand our facilities rapidly to cater to this increasing demand while maintaining the quality and standards of academic programmes.

APIIT - Sri Lanka, established in association with APIIT in Malaysia and Staffordshire University in the UK, is part of an international collaboration with links to a wide range of reputable universities in the UK and Australia.  APIIT - Sri Lanka's principal purpose is to produce high quality graduates who possess the knowledge and skills in Computing, Business Information Technology and Business Administration to make them true professionals in their respective fields.  In order to achieve these objectives, APIIT provides excellent opportunities for classroom learning, independent and group studies and research.