Report Based on the Mini-Survey on Training

Programs in Sri Lanka

By
Rajith Lakshman and Susantha Liyanaarachchi

Contents
Contents..................................................................................................................................... iii
1.

Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1

2.

The Structure of the Public Sector in Sri Lanka .............................................................. 1

3.

The Central vs. provincial governments: Some statistics ............................................... 2

4.

The role of public sector in Sri Lanka: Broad trends....................................................... 3

5.

Public sector training in Sri Lanka................................................................................... 4

6.

Survey methodology ....................................................................................................... 4

7.

Analysis of the survey results ......................................................................................... 5

i.

The type/nature of training offered ................................................................................ 5

ii.

The trainees .................................................................................................................... 6

iii.

The financial framework.............................................................................................. 7

iv.

Innovative Programs ................................................................................................... 8

v.

The organization of training institutions ......................................................................... 9

8.

Beyond Institutions: Other issues ................................................................................. 10

9.

Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 11

References ............................................................................................................................... 12
Appendix A:

The Survey Data............................................................................................. 14

A.1:

Center for Housing Planning & Building (CHPB) ....................................................... 14

A.2:

Center for Urban and Regional Planning (CURP) ...................................................... 15

A.3:

Distance Education for Public Servants (DEPS)......................................................... 15

A.4:

Institute of Government Accounts and Finance (INGAF) .......................................... 17

A.5:

Institute of Workers Education (IWE) ....................................................................... 18

iii

A.6:

Lawyers for Human Rights and Development (LHRD) .............................................. 19

A.7:

Management and Development Training Units (MDTU), The Western Provincial

Council.................................................................................................................................. 19
A.8:

National Institute of Business Management (NIBM) ................................................. 21

A.9:

National Institute of Education (NIE) ........................................................................ 22

A.10:

National Institute of Health Science (NIHS) .......................................................... 23

A.11:

National Institute of Social Development (NISD) .................................................. 24

A.12:

Public Service Training Institute (PSTI)................................................................. 25

A.13:

Rural Development Training and Research Institute (RDTRI)............................... 26

A.14:

Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration (SLIDA) ................................. 27

A.15:

Sri Lanka Institute of International Relations (SLIIR) ........................................... 29

A.16:

Sri Lanka Institute of Local Governance (SLILG)................................................... 30

Appendix B:

The Structure of the public sector in Sri Lanka .............................................. 32

iv

1. Introduction
The Administrative Reforms Committee appointed in 1986 chaired by Shelton Wanasinghe,
produced what is generally accepted as the most comprehensive analysis of the Sri Lankan
public service. The fact that the report of the commission came out in ten volumes is
indicative of the extent to which it covers the subject. The fifth volume, Report Number 5,
titled Training and Career Development deals with the very subject of the mini-survey. A
broad finding of the mini-survey is that the problems identified in by the Wanasinghe
Committee almost two decades continue to impede the Sri Lankan public service.
Wanasinghe Committee outlined three major constraints with regard to the training of public
servants: (1) shortage of funds for public service training, (2) inadequacy of trained trainers
and (3) reluctance to release public servants to undergo training. The Committee attributed
these constraints to the lack of a coherent and a consistent policy framework.1 This study,
while reiterating the above as the broad constraints, goes on to narrow them down to specific
constraints as experienced by todays training institutions.

2. The Structure of the Public Sector in Sri Lanka

The legal and administrative structure of Sri Lanka is based on a republican constitution,
adopted in 1978. The Executive President of the Republic is elected by the people and holds
office for a six-year term. The Parliament consists of 196 members elected by the people and
29 members from the national lists. The President appoints the Prime Minister and the
Cabinet of Ministers and is the Head of the Cabinet. The central government rule is exercised
thought to the village level using the network of District Secretaries (25) Divisional
Secretariats (320) and Grama Niladharies.
Parallel to the central government structure there is the provincial government structure. The
Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution (1987) brought in the Provincial Councils Act (No
42), which divided the country into nine provinces for administrative purposes. Power has
been devolved to the provinces with the unit of devolution being the Provincial Council
comprising of members elected by provincial votes. A Governor appointed by the President
heads the province, while a Chief Minister appointed from the elected members, heads the
Provincial Council. With the establishment of the PCs the administration in the country was
decentralized. The Central and Provincial governance structures are outlined in Figure B.1 of
Appendix B.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) echoed a similar opinion in its report to the president in

1997.

3. The Central vs. provincial governments: Some statistics

The latest Census of Public and Semi Government Sector Employment was conducted in
2002. Tables B.1 to B.5 in Appendix B analyze some of the results of the Census. According
to Table B.1 the public sector in Sri Lanka (including the semi-government sector) is
estimated to be more than nine hundred thousand strong. Given the fact that total population
in the country is about 20 million this boils down to a figure of 22 persons per each
government servant. This may compare poorly with a much higher figure of 58 for New
Zealand and may hint that the number of civil servants in Sri Lanka is too many.2. It may be
said that Sri Lanka has more than double of what is considered as a reasonable number of
civil servants. Therefore, how these excessive administrators function is a critical issue.
Table B.2 also reveals that the central and the provincial governments employ a similar
number of public servants; each employ 36% and 33% of the total respectively. The semigovernment sector, which includes state corporations and universities, is also significant. In
addition Table B.2 compares the gender representation of the Central and Provincial
governments. It seems that there are better opportunities for females at Provincial
governments than at the Central government. Though there are more females in Provincial
governments than males57% against 43%it has better gender balance than the Central
Government.
Table B.3 contains information on public servants who are professionally qualified i.e. who
has had some form of post-entry training. It is clear that provincial public servants are better
trained than the central counterparts52% against 22%. Both males and females enjoy this
advantage in the provincial sector. For instance, when the center trains only 15% of the males
the provincial councils train 37%. The percentage of females who are trained is also higher in
the provincial councils than in the center: 62% vs. 39%. This disparity in the numbers trained
could relate mainly to the level training needs. We are aware of two possible reasons why
provincial councils may have higher training needs than center. Firstly, they were governed by
a relatively newer set of rules that emerged with the Thirteenth Amendment. New rules meant
that the people who worked with them had to be trained afresh. Even after two decades the
tradition seem to continue unabated.
Secondly, working with the center was not as simple as laid down in the Thirteenth
Amendment. Irrespective of what the constitution said about the devolved subjects, exercising
the provincial councils power was found to be some what difficult. More so, when opposing
political parties ruled the center and the councils. A provincial council which wanted to uphold
their authority had therefore to think seriously about training their employees on operating

See Albrechtsen (2006).

within these political-economic realities. In addition the provincial councils seem to have
matched higher training needs with higher amount of dedicated resources for training.
Table B.3 also show that the distribution of available training opportunities shows gender
equality in the center and female bias in the provinces. In provincial public sector 69% of
trained are females (31% are males). This number can be compared against 53% in the
central public sector (47% are males).
Thus we can conclude that while central and provincial public sectors seem on par in terms of
numbers employed the latter is more female biased than the former. The bias can be
identified in two areas: (1) in the available employment opportunities and, (2) in the
distribution of training opportunities.

4. The role of public sector in Sri Lanka: Broad trends

After independence in 1948 Sri Lanka continued with the colonial economic structure and
therefore little change was needed in the administrative system. That is until 1956 when the
left oriented government of S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike came into power. That government had
put greater emphasis on the role of the public sector. Public servants were expected to
manage the state owned enterprise and administer trade and exchange controls as well as
subsidies. It was almost as if an entrepreneurial role was being assigned to them. This
strategy continuedexcept for the punctuation during 1965-70 perioduntil 1977.
Since 1977, the governments that came into power have relied more on market oriented
policies and private enterprises for economic growth and development. Though these
governments generally discouraged centralized planning there still was a significant role to be
played by the public sector. For during this period there was a heavy dependence on donor
assisted investment in infrastructure, health, education and poverty alleviation which made it
imperative that these investments were prioritized, coordinated, planned and implemented. It
was the public sector that performed these important tasks.
In 1987 further complexities were introduced to the public service by the 13th Amendment to
the Constitution, which devolved power to the Provinces. This was a complexity because it
involved a process of delineating the public service into central and provincial components. In
practice, that was never a straightforward affair in spite of the 13th Amendment, which clearly
identified the responsibilities the provincial councils. Past experiences indicate in addition to
the legislative changes, changes were needed in administrative practices and work norms.
Analogous to the devolution of powers to the provinces the center was also on a
decentralizing trend. For instance in 1992 some attempts were made to vest more powers in
the Divisional Secretariats.
The above historical/political events mark critical junctures in the evolution of the role of the
Sri Lankan public servant. While the evolution tracked above refers to what the public servant
3

should do, there is also the issue of how they should do it. This brings in a whole bunch of
extremely contentious issues such as political interference in the public service, the delays
and poor quality of the service, corruption and other transparency related matters, etc. In
short engaging in good governance practicesto improve transparency, predictability, and
participationis a big part of the modern day public service.
However, as Shelton Wanasinghe Committee nearly two decades ago reported, the public
service has still not responded favorably to the challenges posed by its evolving role. Factors
such as faulty recruitment, the low level of remuneration, over-staffing, inappropriate work
systems and procedures, inadequacy of performance evaluation, as well as inadequacies of
training have contributed to this state of affairs.

5. Public sector training in Sri Lanka

Pre-entry education and post-entry experience alone are not adequate to equip the public
servant for coping with the new demands. In addition there needs to be some training that can
help the public servant to equip themselves to perform their role competently and efficiently.
In other words planned participation in appropriately designed training is a critically important
factor in creating a public service that can deliver the goods. In fact the current state of
deterioration in the public sector in Sri Lanka may be attributed to the sorry state of the
training programs and training institutions available for the public sector.
To date, many recommendationsincluding those of the Wanasighe Committeehave been
submitted to the government with the aim of improving pubic sector training. These
recommendations, it seems, have so far not been considered a priority. The neglect has
added to the problem by creating a huge backlog of needsin terms of numbers to be trained,
and the quality of training. In addition the geographic dispersion of the population of public
servants has made this problem a logistical nightmare for the training institutions, which are
mostly Colombo-centered.
While the above has direct implications to the development of the country there are other
skills that the public servant needs to possess to be abreast of the modern day expectations.
Issues and skill related to e-governance and computerization of various aspects of public
service figure high among these. In addition changes in the public service, such as the
creation of the Assistant Management Service, pose new challenges for the training
institutions.

6. Survey methodology
The only list of training institutions for public servants in Sri Lanka is a directory compiled by
Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration (SLIDA). However, the most recent SLIDA
directory was for the year 1981. It contains a description and contact details of government
and semi government institutions that conducted training at that time. However, non4

government institutions such as civil society organizations and international donor agencies
that work in the training field are not listed therein perhaps because they were relatively
inactive in this field back in 1981. Because of these deficiencies we did not base our sample
on the SLIDA directory. Instead we relied on the knowledge of some of the experts in the field
to select the sample. The sample therefore reflects what these experts thought were the more
prominent training institutions for the public servants. The 16 institutions surveyed in this
report in the opinion of the experts include what must appear in a survey like this.
We were also particularly careful to include in the sample, all known categories/types of
training institutions i.e. central government, provincial and local governments, NGOs,
universities. Moreover, the sample includes most of the major disciplines that come under
public service training. Table B.4 in Appendix B identifies these disciplines as unidentified in
the Census of Public and Semi Government Sector Employment of 2002. The 16 institutions
investigated in this survey clearly cover the most important of these disciplines. This coverage,
according to Table B.4, also implies that the institutions in the sample together train a large
proportion of the public servants in Central and Provincial sectors. For example, National
Institute of Education (NIE) covers education (59%); National Institute of Health Science
(NIHS) covers health (12%), so forth.

7. Analysis of the survey results

This section analyses the survey results with the objective of ascertaining the salient features
of the sample of training institutions. Various aspects of the analysis are arranged in five
separate subsection in what follows.

i. The type/nature of training offered

It was noted that most of the training by the surveyed institutions aim to improve public
service management. This, as we see it, is the kind of training that enables the public
servants to continue the existing lines of work. These can be described as reactive functions
of public servants. In addition, there are programs that provided training on policy formulation,
an important proactive function of a public servant. For example SLIDA, Center for Urban and
Regional Planning (CURP) and NIE have policy components in their training modules.
However, the success of these programs would rely upon whether the contents are delivered
in an innovative and a practical manner which helps the trainees develop their policy making
skills. For mere transfer of knowledge is not enough here. We do not have sufficient
information to conclude whether participants prefer this policy contents training to other types
of training. However the former programs are compulsory for higher grade civil servants, who
do not have a choice on this matter but to participate. These policy contents training is
obviously target those who are already involved in the policy making process. That is why it
has been made compulsory for them to participate.

SLIDA, Public Service Training Institute (PSTI) and National Institute of Business
Management (NIBM) training programs for public service management are attended to by a
cross section of public servants representing various disciplines. In other words these training
programs cater to broad training needs. In contrast training offered by Center for Housing
Planning & Building (CHPB), CURP, Institute of Government Accounts and Finance (INGAF)
etc. cater to training needs of narrowly defined public services. For example, while SLIDA
clientele includes Sri Lankan Administrative Service (SLAS) officers, accountants, and
engineers, INGAFs clientele include only those who handle public accounts.
Another categorization of training can be based on whether the participant or her employer
pays for the training or they receive it at no cost. At no cost means that the costs are being
absorbed by either the government or a donor agency. NIE, NIHS, and National Institute of
Social Development (NISD) are amongst the free training providers. NIBM, INGAF, CURP,
etc. have a significant amount of paid courses. Then there are institutions that combine these
paid and free programs such as SLIDA. It looks like as if the paid courses are more reliable
source of money for the training institutions than the free ones. This is because the participant
takes the responsibility of paying on time even if they would eventually be reimbursed by their
employer. On the other hand when the responsibility is with the governments the payment is
not considered very reliable. This probably reflects that the government has meager funds for
training. Not getting paid on time naturally jeopardizes the sustainability of the training
institution. Thus financial independence achieved by conducting paid course is valued by all
training institutions.
The other side of the coin is that financial independence could lead to total independence.
Financially independent institutions have tended to work independently of government
policies. This leads to a situation where government looses authority over the critical subject
of training. Thus it is important to restrict financial independence to only that. In other words
government should have a say in what kind of programs the training institutions conduct.

ii. The trainees

The survey revealed that public employees from all levels of the service are trained in the
sample of institutions. However, the administrative officers seem to get more opportunities
than for example the technical grade employees. The former seem to have more
opportunities for training both in terms of funding as well as the choice of institutions. It is
alleged that high officials get more training opportunities than subordinate groups. Table B.5,
based on Census of Public and Semi Government Sector Employment (2002), is tentative
proof of this. The table shows that in relative terms more senior managers (46%) and
professionals (72%) have been trained than clerks (19%).
The survey revealed instances where elected representatives of provincial councils were
trained. However, training opportunities for the members of parliament (MPs) of the central
6

government are scant. For example Management and Development Training Units (MDTUs)
of the provincial councils and Sri Lanka Institute of Local Governance (SLILG) have programs
for elected members of provincial councils. SLILG provide training for elected members at the
local level which means that only the elected members of prdeshiya sabas, Urban councils
and Municipal councils can participate in them. The main aim of these programs is to
enhance the capacity of elected members to serve the public. Most of these comprise of
awareness programs. Though some of the SLILG se programs are held in Colombo most are
held in their regional centers.
Rural Development Training and Research Institute (RDTRI) was a special case, where the
trainees included social leaders and Samurdhi (the poverty alleviation program of the state)
beneficiaries. The main focus is promoting participatory development. This is a key area that
has been neglected in other training institutions. RDTRI training targets peasant communities.
While the target group itself is a first in the circle of training institutions in Sri Lanka the
content and the delivery is also unique. It is noteworthy that the participants themselves
decide the type of training they require. Suppose that some rural community solicits help from
RDTRI on solving a problem faced by them. In response to such a request trainers from the
institute will visit the community interact with them for many days in a bid to understand the
problem. During their stay they identify the problems or the areas in which the community
need training or improved skills. Some of the areas identified in the past are how to reach
agreements, how to work collectively, and how to form an effective apparatus of community
management. The educational and social background of rural communities makes such
problems very difficult to cope with. This underscores the value of RDTRI type programs.
Another advantage in this particular program is that it does not bring the participants down to
Colombo. They are mostly trained in their villages.

iii. The financial framework

The central government in recent times has shown a reluctance to finance the activities of
training institutions. Instead the various departments and ministries are allocated a training
budget, which they can spend at a training institution of their choice. Thus the training
institutions do not have a captured market they can rely on. This is why we see that in most of
the training intuitions part of the fundingin some cases all of itis being funded by the
moneys earned by the respective institution. Some of the interviewees did not like this trend
because they believed that it has undermined the key focus of the institutions. For example
some officials of SLIDA expressed the concern that the money earning activities such as
various degree programs of SLIDA may have a negative impact upon the institutions core
activity of training public servant.
The above distraction aside, we did witness what may be identified as benefits of financial
independence. For instance, the self-financed institutions had considerably better facilities
than those that were heavily dependent on state funds. For example NIBM, which is totally
7

independent, has noticeably better lecture rooms, computer labs as well as better-qualified
staff than NISD, which relies on government funds for its sustenance. However we cannot
rule out the possibility that this contrast is due to factors other then the degree of financial
independence. For example, the level of experience indicated by the number of year in
existence and also the social and official status of the clientele being served are also different
between NIBM and NISD.
Another feature that struck us was the fact that Provincial Governments has more budgetary
allocations for training that the central governments. For example MDTUs that were
established under ministries of the central government has ceased to function due mainly
financial difficulties. In contrast the MDTUs of the provinces are still functioning well with the
provincial training budgets.
Some of the training institutions continue to be highly dependent on government funds even
when there are possibilities for them to raise funds by providing training for a fee. They
choose not to pursue the moneymaking opportunities due to various issues. One issue is that
they are not being established independently from the corresponding ministries. As such they
do not have the freedom to spend the monies they earn. A second issue would be that most
of the government services are offered for people free of charge (Free health and free
education). As a result their training institutions face the problem fund raising on their own.

iv. Innovative Programs

Some training institutions have sought to become financially independent of government
finances. They use two methods to achieve this. First is to divert some of their resources into
revenue generating training programs. For example, SLIDA and NIBM have quite a lot of
profit making programs. Although this may be a sustainable approach to attaining financial
independence, it may prove to be too costly a solution because it tends to shift the focus of
the institute concerned.
Second method is to solicit funds from international donor agencies. For example NIE and
NIHS have several donor-funded programs. Though neither of these methods is innovative in
the global training setting, they are new in the Sri Lankan context, where public training
institutions rely heavily on government funds.
Distance Education for Public Servants (DEPS) has several innovative features in it. Features
such as the distance delivery, self-learning groups, use of English, use of modern technology
etc. help it stand out from the rest. In our opinion the demise of the DEPS program is also due
to an innovationGovernment-NGO partnership. We believe that the partnership, though
introduced with the best of intensions was poorly implemented. They should have been more
careful given that the contention between the state and the NGOs is a well-documented
phenomenon. We believe that there was an ownership issue: the government officials may
8

have felt left out because the NGO played the critical role. From the inspiration onwards every
effort that went into the project clearly had the stamp of the NGO in it. While the ideas etc.
may be path breaking it must be appreciated that in the final analysis the involvement and the
contribution of the government matters a lot. The latter part of the equation may have been
neglected in the case of DEPS. However, that does not negate the positive lessons learnt
through other innovations implemented by DEPS.
RDTRIs rural leaders program is also a departure from the norm. It is unique in that it seems
to be the only program which gives due recognition to the concept of participatory
development. Theoretically such training can make the public more receptive of policy
changes and in fact the policy changed could also come from the public. However we could
not at this stage of the survey verify whether these positive results are available for RDTRI.

v. The organization of training institutions

It was clear from the beginning that the training institutions are fragmented and operate in
isolation from each other. Because of this much duplication of training facilities has taken
place. This situation may arise out of the lack of a centralized information system for civil
service training. This was major problem at the time of selecting a sample for the mini-survey.
This information problem is a reflection of a much bigger problem of not having a long-term
state policy on public sector training.
It is not clear how individual training institutions/programs fit into the big scheme of things.
Important links between higher education institutions and post-entry training of government
workers have not been established. So far the complementariness and substitutability of
various programs run by universities and public servant training institutions has not been
clearly demarcated.
Most of these training institutions are located in Colombo and suburbs. This makes it difficult
for public servants from outstations to access them. Traditional face-to-face lectures, which
was the predominant delivery method used by most of the surveyed institutions, has limited
capacity to address this issue. In fact, those who have attempted to do so, such as NIBM and
SLIDA have realized that decentralization of traditionally delivered training is highly
uneconomical. This arises as a result of both demand-side and supply-side effects. On the
demand-side, the demand for Colombo based training is significantly more than the demand
for out-of-Colombo training. This is related to two inter-connected realities: (1) that Colombo
based institutions command more resources and, (2) that their training is better recognized in
professional circles. On the supply-side, physical and personnel resource limitations make it
very difficult to take these training programs out side of Colombo.
In addition lectures are not the most effective method to achieve higher teaching goals. It
works fine for lower teaching goals such as transferring knowledge. However, in training
9

public servants much more is expected. For example higher teaching goals like developing
skills and cultivating positive attitudes need more innovative teaching methods than lectures.
In this setting new technologies and distance learning methods should be introduced to the
training system. DEPS which was a distance learning method used role play and case study
techniques. While such methods are considered more effective, there has been a very limited
attempt to use such relatively new methods.
The state has not imposed proper checks and controls on training programs. The quality of
training programs and the teachers who deliver them have been compromised on account of
this lapse. More importantly it reflects that the state does not care about how and for what
purpose its employers are trained. This lack of interest on the part of state sector is in accord
with the in-fashion policy stance of shrinking the state.

8. Beyond Institutions: Other issues

Public servant training institutions on their own cannot ensure that the public servants are
properly trained. They are merely a single entity in a much wider institutional framework that
is needed for the purpose. Some of the other aspects of this framework were exposed during
the mini-survey. This section highlights these.
The survey results revealed that the effect of training on the activities of civil servants and
their respective institutions have not been studied methodically. In short, the public sector in
Sri Lanka has no formally established post-training evaluation system. For instance, NIBM
was very critical of the state sectors post-training evaluation system. It was noted that they
received very little post-training evaluation/feedback from that sector. In contrast, it was noted,
that the private sector organizations receiving the same training would provide feedback using
a formal institutionalized post-training evaluation process. As a result, come the next round of
training, the trainers would be better geared to serve the needs of the trainees. A peculiar
reason for the feedback problem in state sector was the lack of understanding on the part of
the immediate bosses of the trainees about the type of training received by their subordinates.
Therefore, it is important that the department heads are trained to carry out post-training
follow up activities on account of the subordinate officers who complete training. MDTUWestern Province has gone a step forward and has initiated one such program.
The above deficiency underscored a much deeper problemthe lack of or weaknesses in
human resource management services within government departments and institutions. With
better HR services the determination of training needs, planning and assessing of training,
utilization of training knowledge/skills in practice, etc. can be streamlined. It would also make
it possible to professionally identify the priority groups of civil servants that need to be trained.
Generally, nepotism, rather than institutional needs, determines who gets to be trained in the
Sri Lankan public service. This, needless to say, betrays the whole purpose of training. It also
wastes the extremely limited funds in two ways. Firstly, the institution may be obtaining a kind
10

of training for which it has no use. Secondly, even if it is a useful training program, if inept
officers with political influence are sent to obtain that training they might have insufficient
capacity to absorb the training.
Another HR related problem, which is worth a separate note, is that there seems to be no
plan for the release of public servants for training. We can curtail the discussion on the matter
by noting that the content in the Wanasinghe Committee report on the same subject is very
much relevant even today. However, we will go on to add an interesting and a more recent
ramification of the problem. More than a few training institutions in the survey noted that there
is an intense demand for training towards the end of the fiscal year. This situation it seems is
due to some departments releasing their workers simply to fulfill the mandatory requirement
of utilizing the annual budgetary allocations for training. While the demand glut indicates the
lack of a plan to release workers it also hints at a more serious problem of public sector not
having looked at the their own training needs.
At a much higher level there is a need to develop a national policy for public service training,
specially in relation to issues such as prioritization of training, certification and accreditation,
the relationship of training to policies on job grading, remuneration, probation, promotion,
performance appraisal, and recruitment and selection in the public service.
The above issues evolve around the governments role in public servant training. That is not
to undermine the equally, if not more, important role played by the trainee public servant
him/herself. To say that the trainee commitment determines the level of success of the
training is to state the obvious. However the survey revealed the obvious in a tinge more
interesting manner. Several trainers we interviewed noted that trainees from Northern and
Eastern provinces were markedly more committed to the programs than those from other
parts of the country. In the end, the interviewees continued, the former benefited more from
the training than the latter. While it remains to be investigated why trainees from North and
East are more committed, it dose show that commitment on the part of the trainees is a basic
ingredient for a successful training program.

9. Conclusion
The mini-survey covered a sample of sixteen public service training institutions in Sri Lanka.
The analysis of the survey results revealed the prevailing situation in the training institutions
and highlighted the problems faced by them. The remedies that have been implemented to
allay these problems can at best be described as piecemeal and at worse degenerative. For
example, financial independence has been popular solution to the financial problems faced by
the training institutions. While this has made some training facilities financially sustainable it
has also detracted them from their original goal of training public servants into money making
institutions. What is needed is a holistic approach covering all the problem areas of the public
sector: something along the lines of Wanasinghe committee recommendations proposed way
11

back in 1986. The remedy, while being participatory, should allow for newer ideas/practices in
governance such as devolution of power, participatory development and NGO/donor
partnerships with the state.

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Hand Book-1994, National Institute of Health Service
Memories of the Past 1952-2002, (2003), National Institute of Social Development
National Census of Health Manpower (2005), Ministry of Health.
Prospecture-2005, Centre for Urban and Regional Planning
Prospectus and Brochers-2005, Sri Lanka Institute of International Relations
Prospectus-2006, National Institute of Business Management
Prospectus-2006, National Institute of Social Development

12

The Constitution of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (1991), Sri Lanka
Parliament, Government Publication Bureau
Training Directory-2005, Center for Housing Planning and Building
Training Directory-2005, Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration
Training Programme Calender(2006), Institute of Government Accounts and Finance, Ministry
of Finance and Planning

13

Appendix A:

The Survey Data

This appendix presents the survey data. Each institute that we visited is discussed under a
separate subheading. Note that in what follows the institutions are discussed in their
alphabetical order. The information that is collated here were elicited mainly from two types of
sources: (1) interviews with one or more officials attached to the institutions, and
(2) pamphlets and other reading material prepared by the institutions.3

A.1: Center for Housing Planning & Building (CHPB)

Location
33, Sunil Mawatha
Pelawatta, Battaramulla, Sri Jayawardenepura, Sri Lanka
Tel: 94-01-875628, Fax: 94-01-875628
Contact
Mrs. K.L. Kandambi
Director
CHPB was established in 1979 as a Training and Research Centre of the Ministry of
Urban Development, Housing and Construction, with a grant from the Government of the
Netherlands.
CHPB provides mid-career training to professionals, administrators and other personnel
involved in the housing, building development and infrastructure programs of the Central
provincial and local governments as well as private sector agencies and individuals.
CHPB collaborates in these activities with the Institute for Housing and Urban
Development Studies (IHS) of the Netherlands. Currently HIS does not provide grants but
CHPB continues to function as a division of the Ministry, financed partly from government
grants and partly from the course fees levied.
Annually government treasury grants for salaries and recurrent expenditures. Trainees pay
for the courses and some training programs are funded by the foreign funding agencies.
These agencies included Asian Productivity Organization (APO), United Nations
Development Program (UNDP), the HIS Rotterdam, United Nations Children's Fund
(UNICEF), Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD) and National
Building Research Organization (NBRO).
Training programs are conducted for technical officers, engineers, housing officers, and
contractors on the request of Government Departments, Provincial, Local Authorities and
private sector organizations.
Areas of training includes construction management, effective communication for
engineers, quantity survey, landscape design and horticulture, building designing using

All the materials are listed in the reference list in page 12.

14

computer software, tendering for contractors, construction planning and scheduling using
computer software, construction site supervision building and road works, quality
management in construction, community water supply and sanitation and low cost housing
training.

A.2: Center for Urban and Regional Planning (CURP)

Location
'Vidya Mandiraya'
No. 120, Wijerama Mawatha
Colombo 07.
Contact
Mr. Ranasinghe
Administrative Officer
The Centre for Urban and Regional planning was established in 2002 as the education
arm of the Institute of Town Planners Sri Lanka (ITPSL). Training courses at the centre
focuses on providing professional training for the personal engaged in physical planning in
Urban, Local Authorities and other public and private sector agencies funding physical
planning activities.
The courses include an orientation course as well as courses in preparation for exams
conducted by Institution of Town Planners of Sri Lanka (ITPSL). The later professional
qualification is a great motivation for the participants to get the training offered by CURP.
The orientation course is a 15-day course, which charges Rs.12500 from participants. A
typical orientation course can accommodate 40 students. Though there is keenness on the
part of potential trainees their respective institutions is handicapped by lack of funds to pay
the above fee.
The contents of the orientation course promises to be very pragmatic and includes topics
such as: Role of Local authorities in the management of towns, Application of Planning
Tools, Local Government Budget, Redevelopment in Cities, Problem of low-income
communities, Transport and Urban Planning, Computer application in Town Planning
(Autocad), etc.
It is observed that CURP is undergoing financial difficulties every year when training
courses are conducted. Even though training needs are high, the number of programs
conducted by CURP is reduced to two due to lack or resources. This remains as a major
obstacle in improving the capacity of the officers in the urban and local authorities, as this
type of training is not provided by the private sector.

A.3: Distance Education for Public Servants (DEPS)

Location
713, D.P. Wijesinghe Mawatha,
Pelawatte, Battaramulla
15

 Contact
Dr. Lloyd Fernando
Director
Tel: +94 11 7287117
Email: Lloyd@wisrilanka.org
The DEPS project was launched in June 2001 and continued till June 2004. Currently the
project is on hold for reasons we will discuss later. However, the innovative approaches
initiated by the project prompted us to add it to this survey.
DEPS project was financed by NORAD, sponsored by the Ministry of Public Administration,
facilitated by SLIDA, and executed by Worldview Global Media Ltd., an NGO. It is an
example of an attempted collaboration between state and NGO sectors in the area of
training.
There is very little that SLIDA and other face-to-face training institutions can do to bridge
the accumulated backlog of training requirements; not only because of the large numbers
that remains to be trained but also because they are dispersed far and wide. A distant
training program such as DEPS was therefore thought to be more suitable for Sri Lankan
Conditions.
The methodology adopted for DEPS is a combination of self-learning, peer group
interaction, discussion, and debate. For this purpose 113 group-learning centers were
established through out the country. They were located at Ministries, Departments,
Provincial Councils, Regional Offices, District Secretariats and Divisional Secretariats.
Clearly the aim was to establish the centers near the work places of the trainees.
Each group had a leader appointed by the ministry or the department concerned. His/her
task was to be the facilitator, motivator, trouble-shooter, evaluator and change manager of
the group. All of these functions were critical for a self-learning exercise like DEPS. Having
said that the drawback was that the success of the program depended heavily on the
quality of the group leader. Though strict guidelines on how to appoint a leader were
issued to senior officials who pointed them, the guidelines were sometimes not followed.
An important feature of the DEPS program was its innovative approach to inculcating the
ability to work in English. It made the training more sustainable by helping the public
officials to engage in self-learning using Internet and other English language material.
Inadequate English language skills were a major problem for the participants. Several
measures were taken to remedy this: (1) once the experts have prepared the course
material, they were rewritten in a simple and fun to learn way; (2) a weekly radio program
produced by the DEPS program also helped the participant to overcome English
difficulties; (3) the radio programs were also available in audiotapes, which could be
listened to from home.
DEPS program ran out of money with one semester remaining to go. This happened
because the earlier stages took more time than planned due mainly to Financial

16

Regulations (FRs). However, an even more serious problem was the lack of enthusiasm
on the part of governmentat various levelsto overcome these delays.
The initiative came from an NGO, Worldview Global Media Ltd., which may have made it
difficult to attract fullest support from the Government. The initial enthusiasm and support
reflected personal interest of some of the officials in SLIDA and the Ministry of Public
Administration. This support could not be sustained once these officials got replaced. It
meant that a serious government policy was not backing DEPS.

A.4: Institute of Government Accounts and Finance (INGAF)

Location
355-3/1, Olcott Mawatha, Colombo 10
Tel. +94 11 2472335/6
Fax. +94 11 2472334
Email: ingaf@sltnet.lk
Contact
Mr. P.A.D.M.D. Ponweera
Registrar/Accountant
INGAF is the training body of the Ministry of Finance. Its establishment was possible due
to the funding from ADB. INGAF materialized as a part of ADBs Financial Management
Reform Project (FMRP). However currently the institution is functioning independent of
ADB funds.
INGAF conducts over 60 training programs, annually. They cover areas such as Public
Financial Management, Information Technology, General Management, and
communication Skills. Each program is limited to 2-3 days.
Other services offered by INGAF include consultancy services, advisory services,
in-service facilities, and publications.
The Sri Lankan Civil Accountants Service officials such as Accountants, Finance
Managers, Accounting Technicians, Bookkeepers, Accounts Clerks and Cashiers/Shroffs
participate in these programs. INGAFs training has become even more useful after the
introduction of internal audit braches to government offices.
INGAF training programs are also open to the private sector participants. Approximately
5%-10% of the participants are from the private sector. These include staff from various
donor-funded projects.
INGAF receives an allocation of Rs.2.5m from the government to maintain its capital
assets. The earnings from training programs and other services cover other expenses
including recurrent expenditures. Own funds of INGAF are adequate to meet their
expenses.
Compared to the other institutions INGAF has properly understood long-range strategic
goals, financial strengths, firm's business purposes and values, firm's rate of growth,
profitability and possible business partners. Also there are specified expected
17

improvements in the future in terms of training, consultancy, organizational, financial and

resource personnel.
During 2005 INGAF conducted 141 programs. This sums up to 12973 training days and
2283 trainees.
The institutional structure of INGAF is such that it gives them more room to maneuver than
for example the usual government department. For instance, even though the government
circular on payments to lecturers stipulates an hourly rate of Rs. 400, INGAF pays its
lecturers Rs.700/hr.
The interviewees noted that the staff-grade officers absorb a major part of available
training funds. This leaves the subordinate grades with very little money to be used for
their training.

A.5: Institute of Workers Education (IWE)

Location
No. 275 Bauddhaloka Mawatha,
Colombo 7
Tel: +94 11 2503393
Email: iwe@cmb.ac.lk
Contact
Director
IWE was established in 1975 under the University of Colombo. The main reason to
establish this institute was the great demand made by trade unionists and Ministry of
Labour to improve opportunities available for workers to obtain higher educational
qualifications and develop their potentials academically and professionally.
IWE offers three levels of programs in labor studies: Foundation level, Diploma Level and
the Degree level. Entry qualifications to these programs indicate the willingness on the
part of IWE to encourage the workers who missed out on education earlier in their lives to
gain academic qualifications.
Employed or self-employed persons with 5 year working experience over the age of 22
years with at least Year Eight in school and five years of work experience are eligible to
seek admission to the foundation program. Persons with minimum of two years of work
experience and have passed G.C.E ordinary level examination are eligible to apply for the
Diploma program. Those who have passed in G.C.E advanced Level and have two-year
work experience are eligible to apply for the Degree program in labor studies.
The course contents include the subject areas of law, statistics, political science,
economics, communication, public relations, accountancy, management, trade unionism,
labour, policy, and population studies. Lectures are conducted in the evenings from 5 pm
to 7 pm.

18

 IWE offers these courses free of charge to the trainees. This is possible because the
treasury funds its activities. Even though about 300 students enroll for all these programs
each year, only one third completes the degree program.
IWE merely provides academic qualifications for the trainees. Although the participants are
all working, IWE courses do not directly contribute to improve their skills.
Mode of delivery is ordinary lectures. After a full day of work concentrating on a two hour
lecture is challenging to say the least.

A.6: Lawyers for Human Rights and Development (LHRD)

Location
233/1, Cotta Road
Colombo 08.
Contact
Mr. K. Thiranagama
Director
LHRD is an NGO which was started in 1986 with the objective of promoting and
protecting human rights of the poor. Members of LHRD are all lawyers concerned with
human rights, law students and non legal professionals.
LHRD educate people on laws relating human rights, assist people in protecting and legal
recognition, highlights the laws violating human rights, and provide legal aids to those
communities whose human rights are violated.
LHRD conducts training and awareness programs for public servants. They conduct
training programs for village heads (Grama Niladari) through Divisional Secretariats since
1998. Participants will be trained in the areas of Laws related to Grama Niladari, Human
Right Law and Law and order. This training program has been conducted in most of the
Divisional Secretariats in the country.

A.7: Management and Development Training Units (MDTU), The

Western Provincial Council
Location
Srawasthi Mandiraya
Chief SecretariatWestern Provincial Council,
No. 32, Sri Marcus Fernando Mawatha,
Colombo 07.
Contact
Mr. M. Ramanayake

Mr. Lalith Kannangara

Deputy Chief Secretary (Human Resources

Part time Lecturer

and Training)

Also Council SecretaryWestern Provincial

Tel: + 94 11 2693952

Council
19

The Sri Lankan government established eight Provincial Councils under the 13th
Amendment to the Constitution and the ancillary Provincial Councils Act in 1987. All
Provincial Councils are provided with a Management Development Training Unit (MDTU)
headed by a Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Council to conduct training programs for
the provincial public servants.
In addition to the provincial MDTUs each ministry and department also had its own MDTU.
However, these were relatively under financed and as of today barely functioning. In
contrast, the Provincial Councils took their MDTUs more seriously and infuses Rs. 20m
annually to each of them.
The Sri Lanka Institute of Local Governance (SLILG) is the central government
mechanism to coordinate the training activities of provincial MDTUs. (Subsection A.15 has
more details on SLILG). However, MDTUs see this as an attempt by the Center to
exercise authority over a devolved activity.
Development Management at the local level was a new experience for the public servants
of Sri Lanka. The need for training and for provision of technical assistance to improve
core management functions and processes was critical after the introduction of the new
institutions of Provincial and Local governance. MDTU training aims to improve
performance by elevating financial, administrative, and managerial and service delivery
capacities of the provincial and local authorities.
In addition to the management capacity building, MDTUs provide trainings to facilitate the
institutional capacity building of Provincial Councils and Local Authorities. This is important
because retaining the control of the devolved subjects is not straightforward in spite of the
provisions in the Provincial Councils Act. Development management in the provinces
resulted in many conflicts between the center and the provinces. Therefore, MDTUs role
as a mechanism in strengthening devolution must be appreciated if one wants to
meaningfully devolve powers.
MDTUs also perform a critical function by training elected members. They get training on
Internal democracy, constituency relations and platform development.
It is noted that very few MDTU programs cater to the specific needs of local governments.
For example, the MDTUs do not provide specific induction courses for newly appointed
local government employees. Instead these recruits go through training on generic
subjects open to all MDTU trainees. However, local authorities have very specific
problems and needs that are not addressed in these generic courses.
Western Provincial Council is the richest among the 8 provincial councils in the island.
There exists a large economic and financial disparity among the provincial councils in Sri
Lanka. The financial stability of the Provincial Council is reflected in the facilities available
at the respective MDTU. Thus the Western Province MDTU is by far the best equipped out
of all provincial MDTUs.

20

 In contrast to the Western MDTU in some of the other MDTUs depend on financial support
from the central government. In addition these MDTUs receive financial support from the
World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
Resource personnel in MDTUs consist of senior officials who work as part time lecturer.
For example Mr. Kannangara who we interviewed in his classroom is the incumbent
Council Secretary of the Western Provincial Council. The extensive experience in key
public sector positions, no doubt, makes them very useful resource personnel. However
the flip side of the coin is that their commitment to their main work means that their
teaching work has to be compromised.
An MDTU, which is meant to satisfy training needs that exist on the ground. In that sense
an MDTU should ideally work as a bottom-up structure, where training needs are identified
at lower levels. However this is difficult due mainly to top-down nature of the public sector
in Sri Lanka.
We were informed that the MDTU of the Western Province is functioning well compared to
not only the other provincial MDTUs but also to some Central government training
institutions such as PSTI (Subsection A.11 has more details on PSTI).

A.8: National Institute of Business Management (NIBM)

Location
120/5, Wijerama Mawatha, Colombo 07
Contact
S.C. Kaluarachchi
Management consultant and Director Management Development
Tel: +94 11 2693404
Email: kalu_sck@yahoo.com
NIBM was established as a statutory body under the Ministry of Industries and Scientific
Affairs in collaboration with UNDP and ILO. Currently, NIBM operates under the Ministry of
Skills Development and Vocational and Technical Training.
NIBM provides business management education and training as well as management
consultancy and advisory services. Apart from training undertaken under its name, NIBM
shares its resource personnel with public sector training institutions such as SLIDA and
SLILG. That also is a significant contribution to public servant training.
All the courses offered by NIBM are open to public as well as private sector workers.
Roughly 40% of the trainees are from the public sector. NIBM organizes in-house training
programs as well as tailor made causes for government workers on request. These are
directly related to their work.
The Treasury does not allocate money for NIBM to conduct training programs. Fees paid
by the trainees cover the costs. The respective government departments pay for tuition
fees for NIBM courses for government workers.

21

 NIBM branch in Kandy is said to be not financially viable due to insufficient volumes. This
indicates that even though the Colombo centered training is criticized it is not possible to
expand training networks away from Colombo and still maintain profitability. This may be
an indication that government support is needed to implement such expansions.
It was noted that the private sector makes better use of NIBM training than the public
sector. This is mainly because the heads of private institutions that send people to be
trained are interested in the end product: whether the work of the trainees reflects the
expected positive effects of the training. The public sector on the other hand is mostly
interested in whether training was undertaken.
A concrete examplethat of the Insurance Corporationbacks the above assertion.
NIBM has conducted training for the Corporation before and after it was privatized. NIBM
has seen a clear increase in the level of interest and follow-up activities of the Corporation
after it was privatized.
NIBM has noted a sharp increase in public sector demand for training towards the end of
fiscal year i.e. in the months of November and December. This phenomenon is attributed
to an attempt by the government institutions to finish their training budgets. Notice that if
the budget is not finished within the fiscal year it will be slashed in the following year.

A.9: National Institute of Education (NIE)

Location
Maharagama
Contact
Mr. D.A. Jayatunga
Additional Director General (Finance)
Tel: 9412851301 Fax: 9412851300
The National Institute of Education (NIE) is a public corporation established under the Act
No. 28 of 1985. It is recognized as the prime institute, which is dedicated to the
development of general education in Sri Lanka with the purpose of capacity building of
personnel in the education system. Main functions of this organization are school
curriculum development, professional development and the conduct of policy research on
education and reform needs of schools.
Under the Act NIE is empowered to provide professional development of all personnel in
education system. Accordingly NIE can prescribe examinations, impose conditions leading
to various academic qualifications sought by education professionals recognize
examinations etc. These functions set out standards in Sri Lanka Education Service
(SLES). This standardization is important because not all the training of SLES officers is
undertaken by NIE.
NIE provides training for the personals such as educational managers, teacher educators,
principals and teachers who are in the SLES with the objective of development of
professional and general competence.
22

 NIEs training and instructions for teachers and principals is critical for Sri Lankas future.
This training will equip the trainees with the expertise needed to teach children of all
abilities all over the country.
Training at NIE covers designing of curricula, development of teachers guides and
teaching-learning material. NIE is also involved in the preparation of teachers to implement
new curricula. It does this by training subject directors, in-service advisors and evaluating
the teaching learning materials and standardizing them.
The Treasury funds the main activities of NIE. In addition there are some project
implemented by NIE with support from multilateral donor such as the World Bank and ADB.
NIE has not entered into partnerships with other educational institutions such as
universities that offer education related training. This is surprising given that a large
proportion of graduates enter into the teaching profession.
A perusal of the curricula indicated that the latest research-based instructional techniques
are not been used when training educational personnel. This may be indicative of lack of
care, interest and seriousness with regard to the important task entrusted to NIE. Curricula
also did not cover ancillary but very important roles that teachers are expected to play
such as the motivator, the guide, the counselor, the coach and the disciplinarian.

A.10: National Institute of Health Science (NIHS)

Location
Nagoda, Kalutara
Contact
Dr (Mrs) U.K.D. Piyaseeli
Director
Tel: 94 034 222682, Fax 94 .342226314, Email: nihs@slt.net
Health care is provided free at the point of delivery in state sector health institutions. Sri
Lanka has achieved better health indicators compared to the other countries in South Asia
due mainly to this free service.
NIHS is the Premier training center of the Ministry of Health. According to the National
Census of Health Manpower (NCHM) conducted in 2005, 97206 are employed in the
Ministry of health and other provincial intuitions in the health sector. Approximately 25% of
these employees are in the Primary Health Care (PHC) sector. According to the NCHM
(2005), there are 1581 Public Health Officers (PHI) and 8861 Health Midwives in Sri Lanka.
It produces manpower required for the primary health care (PHC) programs. NIHS
provides comprehensive health care to the population in the field of practice area through
health workers can serve as a bridge between providers of health care services and the
community.
NIHS addresses itself all aspects of health manpower development, coordinate health
manpower development activities between educational and health services agencies in Sri
Lanka. NIHS trains workers and other categories of health personnel in the public health
23

care. Other functions of the institution are to provide medical care services and to conduct
health system research (HSR).
NIHS training consists of basic, posts basic and continuing education. Basic training is
designed to provide training for Public Health Inspectors (PHI), Public Health Midwives
(PHM), Assisted Medical Officers, Medical Laboratory Technicians and Pharmacists. Post
basic training is given to Public Health Nursing Sisters, Supervising Health Midwives, and
ward sisters. Medical Officers of Health (MOH) and middle level managers of primary
health care and PHM are trained in continuing education program.
NIHS uses clinical teaching; classroom teaching and field teaching methods conducted by
clinical specialists, medical officers, tutors and PHC workers.
NIHS carries out its training in twelve regional centers. Four centers (Kurunegala,
Kadugannawa, Galle and Batticoloa) have been established to provide training for PHIs.
Other 8 centers (Moratuwa, Panadura, Badulla, Anuradhapura, Ratnapura, Homagama
and Jaffna) are established to train health midwives in the Island.
NIHS receives an annual budgetary allocations and considerable financial assistance for
the above activities by agencies such as Asian Development Bank (ADB), US AID, The
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Development Program (UNDP),
World Bank, and World Health Organization (WHO) and International Development
Research.

A.11: National Institute of Social Development (NISD)

Location
No 191, Dharmapala Mawatha, Colombo 07.
Contacts
Mr. S. Sirisena (Deputy Director)
Ms Shamalee Attanayake (Lecturer)
NISD originated as an NGO in 1952. Later, when schools were nationalized, it became a
training institution. In 1993 while it was operating as a sub-department of the Ministry of
Social Services it was awarded the degree awarding status under the provisions of the
Universities Act.
NISDs main objective is to train workers to implement social development work and social
welfare programs. It grooms social workers at various levels.
NISD has four divisions: (1) Sri Lanka School of Social Work, (2) Training, (3) Social
Policy Research, and (4) Administration and Finance.
The Training Division conducts the short-term training programs of NISD. In recent times,
after obtaining degree awarding status, the Sri Lanka School of Social Work had
developed a Diploma that involves one year of field research.
Trainees include teachers, Social Development Assistants, Colonization Officers, PHIs,
PHNs, Community Development Officers, Grama Niladari/Village Head, District Youth
Service Officers, etc.
24

 Nearly 50% of the trainees are government workers. Lectures are conducted in Colombo
and trainees have to conduct their fieldwork in rural areas. We felt that NISD has
effectively incorporated rural field research into their training programs. Their network of
regional centers in Kalpiyiya, Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa and Monaragala play a very
useful role in this regard.
Subject Areas: Introduction to social work, social environment, working with individual and
families, working with social groups and communities, social work, human rights,
counseling, family violence, and mental health.
The practical orientation of the training makes the trainees ideally suited to work in Sri
Lankan conditions. For instance it was claimed that almost all of the trainees of NISD, who
are open to job offers, get absorbed into the filed of social work as soon as they finish the
training. The highest demand for these trainees is from NGOs. In fact, NISD claims that
there is an excess demand for their trainees
The government finances 90% of NISDs budget. Also the unemployed trainees get
Mahapola scholarship or a bursary similar to a regular university student.
We noticed that the physical facilities at NISD could be improved further. The lecture
rooms and staff facilities require a lot of capital infusion. The officials we talked with
attributed this state of affairs to the lack of funds, which means that is even though the
government fund allocation for NISD is not adequate.

A.12: Public Service Training Institute (PSTI)

Location
Ministry of Public Administration and Home Affairs
Independence Square
Colombo 07
Contact
Mr. Sunil Abeygunawardena
Director
Tel: +94 011 2676433
The public service training institute was established in 1990 under the Ministry of Public
Administration and Home Affairs. PSTI offers training for non-staff grades of public service.
Its sister organization in the same ministry, SLIDA, caters to the training needs of staff
grade public servants (Subsection A.13 has more details on SLIDA).
The training could either be an induction program or an in-service training program.
Typical PSTI course runs from one day to a maximum of 4 days.
PSTI operates through an outreach network comprising of Management Development and
Training Units (MDTUs) of ministries, departments and provincial councils (Subsection A.6
has more details on MDTUs). This enables a considerable degree of decentralization to
take place.

25

 PSTI provides training in the following areas; Disciplinary Matters, Land Matters, Pension
Program, Advanced Payments, Training Of Trainers, Certificate in Human Resources
Management, Office management & Office Supervision, Stress Management, Public
Relation Communication, Disaster Management, Tender Procedures, Certificate Course In
Public Finance Management & Accounts, Report Writing, Tamil Language, Managerial
Skills, Positive Attitudes & Personal Development, Change Management, English
Language, Good Governance. These are the most common areas of which non-staff
public servants provide their services to the community.
Trainees: Officers in the Public Management Assistants' Service, Book-keepers, Store
Keepers, Shroffs, Stenographers and Typists, Supra Grade Officers, Field Officers, Grama
Niladharis, Development Officers, Social Service Officers, and Program Assistants.
The fact that trainers are unlikely to do any follow-up on their trainees, except to try to
persuade them to take more courses, strong follow up activities.
These courses are fully financed by the government. PSTI courses are open only to the
government servants for no fee. Therefore it cannot raise money from these courses.
Use outdated training methodological approaches; lack solid integration with reform efforts
or provide very little, if any, long-term follow up to ensure substantial improvements in the
productivity and efficiency.
To achieve a meaningful effect the educational program needs to be sustained over a
period of time, involve direct and constant interaction between the trainers and the trainee,
and include practical, hands on learning.
PSTI as a training institution is a failure due to lack of resources, proper premises to
conduct their trainings and not regionally spread through out the country.

A.13: Rural Development Training and Research Institute (RDTRI)

Location
No 24/4, Castle Street, Colombo 8.
Contact
Mr. Ravindra Hewavitharana
Director (Acting)
RDTRI was established in 1978 and is currently under the Ministry of Samurdhi and
Poverty Alleviation. Main objective of RDTRI is to promote participatory development in
rural Sri Lanka. This is achieved by preparing and formulating rural development training
methodologies, development of knowledge and attitudes in pioneers of state and NGOs,
development of training center facilities, publications, coordinating with local and foreign
establishments to disseminate knowledge to grassroots civil society and increase
participation.
Training programs of the Ministry are conducted by RDTRI, International Centre for the
Training of Rural Leaders (ICTRL), Samurdhi Authority of Sri Lanka and Gramodaya Folk

26

Art Centre. Development officers and senior officials of the ministry, village heads and
rural leaders participate in these training.
The training programs conducted for rural leaders selected from among villagers has
poverty alleviation as the main objective. These leaders are expected to influence the rest
of the rural community, businesses and industries through dissemination of the knowledge
gained by training.
Rural Leaders training reinforces the participants confidence and their willingness to try
new and different ways of thinking and behaving. They are not prescriptive i.e. participants
are encouraged to set their own goals and take responsibility for achieving outcomes that
are important to them.
The next category of training is providing training for Samurdhi Beneficiaries. These
people do not have any professional training or any knowledge to start their own
businesses. They are helped to overcome various technical and knowledge based barriers
and other practical problems. They are given training in the areas such as finding a
business idea, small businesses and getting career guidance.
Following training programs or activities are conducted by RDTRI. Training of resource
persons, workshops to identity the new role of rural development officers, training of
officers of rural development societies, program to exchange experience about the new
rural development approach, planning and management of rural development training
programs, social mobilization, participatory rural development, workshop to prepare
training handbooks, Integrated rural development programs, rural development project
management, management development of community based organization and training
programs on accounting.
Challenges and Problems
RDTRI cannot stand as an independent body as it is not established by an act of
parliament and is currently working as a project under the Ministry of Samurdhi. Most of
the higher positions in the executive cadre positions remain vacant.

A.14: Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration (SLIDA)

Location
28/10, Malalasekara Mawatha, Colombo 07, Sri Lanka
Contact Persons
M. Thilakasiri

W. A. Jayasudara

Head, Center for Management Studies

Head, Center for Human Resource Dev

Tel: 94 112585103

Tel: 94 11 2508849

Email: thilak@slida.lk

Email: jayasundara@slida.lk

The Ministry of Public Administration has two training bodies for the public servants in Sri
Lanka, namely SLIDA and Public Service Training Institute (PSTI). SLIDA trains the staff

27

grade public servants and PSTI the non-staff grade public servants. (Subsection A.11 has
more details on PSTI).
SLIDA was established under SLIDA Act No.9 of 1982. As the premier public sector
training organization in Sri Lanka it aims to develop knowledge and improve managerial
skills of public administrators as well as to support and reinforce the role of civil service in
Sri Lanka.
SLIDA offers three types of training programs: (1) Calendar programs offered exclusively
to the public servants. These range from induction trainings for all newly recruited civil
servant to training for top level policy makers of Sri Lankan Administrative Service (SLAS)
(2) Tailor made training conducted at the request of government and private organizations
(3) Out-of-calendar training programs which are open for public servants and those from
outside public service.
SLIDA managed to obtain the degree-awarding status in 2004 under the provisions in the
amendment to the Universities Act (1985). This status enabled them to increase the
number of out-of-calendar programs.
The degree programs offered by SLIDA: Master of Public Management, Postgraduate
Diploma in Public Management, Postgraduate Diploma in Public Financial Management
also in collaboration with Post Graduate institute of Medicine (PGIM) MSC in Medical
Administration
Some of the Subjects found in SLIDA syllabi: Public Administration and Local Governance,
Management Studies, Human Resources Development, Development Management,
Financial Management, Research and Policy Studies, Productivity and Quality, Information
Technology, and Language studies.
Clientele: Officers of the Sri Lanka Administrative, Accountants, planning and engineering
services. Officers from departmental services, Officers in semi-government organizations
(corporations, institutions, authorities, commissions), employees from private sector
organizations, local government officers, Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs), senior
police officers, senior officers of the forces.
The calendar programs which are relevant to the public servants are delivered free of
charge for them. This is possible because the Treasury finances a part of SLIDA
expenditure namely its capital expenses and the staff salaries. The remainder, which
amounts to about 55% of the total expenditure, is self-finances by SLIDA. Thus the income
earning activities have become critical for the survival of SLIDA.
The income earning activities of SLIDA include its consultancy services and
out-of-calendar training programsmeaning training programs offered for a fee and open
to clients from outside public service. Diploma and Masters programs are amongst the
most important out-of-calendar activities of SLIDA. The course fee for these programs is
Rs. 90,000 per head.
Overwhelming majority of the SLIDA training is conducted in Colombo. However, SLIDA
has initiated a decentralization attempt with the help of the District Secretariats.
28

Information Technology, and Language studies are currently being taught in these
out-of-Colombo centers. Still there is a lot of room to improve the facilities at these centers.
The lack of trainers and funds is the main constraint.
The residential center of the institute has fully furnished and equipped single rooms for 60
participants. In addition to the normal lecture rooms, SLIDAs training facilities include two
air-conditioned Auditoriums, one air-conditioned boardroom, five air-conditioned
classrooms, three computer laboratories, and an audio-visual studio with modern facilities.
SLIDA played an active role behind the government gazette no 1419/3 issued on
14.11.2005, which stipulated that the promotion of an SLAS officer be linked to
educational qualifications. Promotions from SLAS Class 3 to 2, from SLAS Class 2 to 1,
from SLAS Class 1 to super grade are now linked to educational qualifications.

A.15: Sri Lanka Institute of International Relations (SLIIR)

Location
No. 24, Horton Place, Colombo 7
Contact
Ms. Manel Abesekara
Director
Telephone: +94 11 5363503
Fax: +94 11 5363504
Email: sliir@formin.gov.lk
SLIIR was established in 2002 under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the personal
involvement of the then minister Lakshman Kadiragama. Though its administrative
structures and physical facilities are still intact its training programs have since the demise
of Minister Kadiragama withered into a state of inactivity.
SLIRR was designed to help the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to conduct discussions,
research, policy planning, and to collaborate between institutions and provide training
when necessary. We were interested in SLIRR on account of the last of these functions.
The training of officers from Sri Lanka Foreign Service (SLFS) by SLIIR, when it was
functioning involved seminars, public lectures, in-house briefings and offers of internships.
The contents of the program were well thought of and were prepared and delivered by the
top people in the country. However, it was noted that the government Financial
Regulations (FRs) did not allow anything more than 600 Rs/hr to be paid to them. The
caliber of people that were providing services to SLIRR would have received more than
double that amount in the competitive market.
A cursory glance asserts that the contents aim to inculcate skills that are critical to the
effective delivery of services by an SLSF officer and could not be obtained elsewhere.
Even the details such as Culture, folk art and music, protocol and etiquette at formal
functions were thought of and included in the syllabi. It was noted that this sort of coverage
was not available with the other diplomatic training institutes such as the Bandaranaike
29

International Diplomatic Training Institute (BIDTI). The objective of SLIIRs training was
different to these institutions in that it concentrated more on on-job skills.
Though the content of the program was very relevant to the target group there were
weaknesses that lead to the failure of the program. The foremost among those was the
fact that the ministry had not appreciated the need for the kind of training offered by SLIIR.
Accordingly the officers were not released from their work to receive the training.
The training program was not formally and institutionally integrated to the administrative
structures of the ministry. That is the SLIIR training was not mandatory. Neither did it
visibly help the participants to progress in their careers. We feel that such compulsions are
important to ensure a healthy rate of participation in training programsat least at the
initial stages.

A.16: Sri Lanka Institute of Local Governance (SLILG)

Location
17, Malalasekara Mw, Colombo 07
Contact
Mr. R.M.A.K. Ratnayake
Consultant(Physical planning)
Tel: +94 11 2581982
In 1999, SLILG was established under the Ministry of Provincial Councils and Local
Government.
SLILG formulates and delivers capacity building programs to the provincial councils and
local authorities. The focus here is the capacity to efficiently and effectively provide
services to the people. SLILG considers the various aspects of good governance vital in
this regard.
SLILG works in partnership with Management and Development Training Units (MDTUs)
of the provincial councils as well as with other organizations, which has objects similar to
those of the Institute. SLILG functions as the resource center on local governance
providing technical information services for its stakeholders; it also coordinates activities of
the relevant national and international institutions.
SLILG uses many methods to uplift the capacity of local governments. Advocacy, training,
research and consultancy services are among these methods.
SLILG has seven divisions. Namely, Human Resource Development, General
Management, Engineering, Physical Planning, Financial Management, Legal and
Research. Each one of these divisions represents an important aspect of local governance.
SLILGs training programs target the elected members and the employees of local
governments.
The Core Modules are as follows: Management information systems, Motivation, Action
planning, Group dynamics, Monitoring evaluations, Communication, Conflict management,

30

Social mobilization. Productivity improvement, Project management, Organization

development and Effective meetings.
SLILG faces several challenges in conducting its training programs. (1) English language
difficulties of the trainees have created a barrier between resource personnel and trainees.
(2) Accessibility problems in North-East Provincial Council due to the ongoing ethnic
conflict in these areas. (3) Inadequate number of trained moderators among member
institutions.

31

Appendix B:

The Structure of the public sector in Sri Lanka

Source: ***********
Figure B.1: The governance structure in Sri Lanka.

32

Coverage
Number of Employees
Rate (%)
Estimated
Enumerated
Total
909,564
835,650
91.9
Central Government
328,108
295,734
90.1
(36%)
Provincial Public sector
308,240
292,071
94.8
(33%)
Semi-Government
237,216
247,845
90.7
(26%)
Table B.1: The coverage of the Public Sector Census, 2002
Sector

Central
295,734
209,187
71%
86,547
29%

Total
Male
Percentage of males
Female
Percentage of females

Provincial
292,071
126,139
43%
165,932
57%

Table B.2: Gender composition of the public sector

Central Provincial
Total

295,734

292,071

64507

150530

22%

52%

30621

47119

Qualified males as a % of total males

15%

37%

Qualified males as a % of total qualified

47%

31%

33886

103411

39%

62%

Number Qualified
Number Qualified as a % of total
Qualified males

Qualified females
Qualified females as a % of total females

Qualified females as a % of total qualified

53%
69%
Table B.3: Professional qualifications of the public servant

Medicine
Health
Engineering & Architecture
Accountancy
Law
Education
Agriculture
Other Professionals
Total trained

Number
Percent
864
0.4%
26130
12.2%
13790
6.4%
3106
1.4%
397
0.2%
127080
59.1%
5041
2.3%
38629
18.0%
215037

Source: Census of Public and Semi Government Sector Employment

Table B.4: The composition of trained according to the

discipline in central and provincial public sectors

33

Senior
Officials and
Managers

Technicians
Professionals and associate
professionals

Clerks and
related
workers

Total

2143

178403

24032

19684

With no professional qualification

1162

50195

11245

15925

Percentage with qualifications

46%

72%

53%

19%

Table B.5: Distribution of training opportunities according to levels of public service.

34