Industrial Development and Health Minister Dr. Ramesh Pathirana said that it is expected to increase the percentage of entrepreneurship in Sri Lanka to 10 percent in order to achieve economic prosperity.
Accordingly, with a view to converting Sri Lanka to a future entrepreneurship state, it is proposed to form school-based ‘School Industry Entrepreneurship Circles’ by the Industrial Development Board (IDB).
As Sri Lanka’s present entrepreneurship rate is 2.8 percent, it has been difficult to build an export-oriented manufacturing economy through industrial service or manufacturing entrepreneurship, the Minister said.
For that, entrepreneurship should be developed at a high rate like other countries. For that purpose, focusing on the school student generation, the IDB has started a nationwide programme of empowering the students for industrial entrepreneurship.
“With the implementation of this programme, it is expected to increase the percentage of entrepreneurship in the country to 10 percent by the year 2030,” the Minister said.
He added that in most developed and developing countries, the percentage of entrepreneurship is more than 10 percent. Accordingly, the percentage of entrepreneurship in our neighbouring India is 14.4 percent and in Pakistan it is 11.57 percent. It is 11 percent in Bangladesh while 16 percent in Vietnam and 27 percent in Thailand.
By the year 2030, the percentage of entrepreneurship in Sri Lanka will be increased from the current 2.8 percent to 10 percent by targeting the school to build an export-oriented production economy through empowering the students while directing them to industrial entrepreneurship. Under the first phase, School Industry Entrepreneurship Circles were started in 300 schools across the country with the assistance of the Education Ministry. Under the second phase, the Industrial Development Board has planned to grow up to 3,000 School Industry Entrepreneurship Circles by the end of 2024.
Besides, one teacher from each school will be trained to teach entrepreneurship at schools. Currently 867 teachers are being trained under the first phase. This teacher training programme is implemented, so that it represents all the nine provinces through the district offices of the IDB.
Students studying in any stream from Grade 9 to 13 can participate in these School Industry Entrepreneurship Circles. It is advised to maintain the number of the members of this School Industry Entrepreneurship Circles between 15-25. The IDB instructs that if there are more than 25 students in a circle it is better to form two or more student circles that can be formed in one school.
Through these student circles, the students are given theoretical and practical knowledge related to business identification, financial activities, marketing, advertising, economic factors and many more.
Under this, students who are members of student circles should first get the entrepreneurship pilot badge in recognition of their entrepreneurial skills. After that, the school student gets the ability to conquer life as well as the country as a successful entrepreneur at school age by gradually receiving the bronze badge, king’s badge, golden badge and finally the presidential badge by appreciating their practical skills.
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