ULEAD SriLanka

Today, the USAID together with key partners including the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce & International Executive Service Corps, launched a vocational skills development program named ULEAD. The private sector has been invited to partner this program and take leadership in designing developing and implementing projects primarily targetting in training school leavers (rather than university graduates) in partly meeting national skills shortage.

While welcoming this initiative as the serving chairman of CCC and someone who is part of the private sector, my suggestions for improving the impact of ULEAD are:

1. When developing curriculum, please focus on 'Outcomes based" curriculum rather than thrusting something which has little or no relevance to the problem. Start with they "outcomes' expected from a job and work back in identifying the attributes a person needs to have to aspire for that job
2. in Sri Lanka, parents still have a big say in what children choose to do post-secondary schooling. Hence, while focussing employment to meet thrust areas of economic growth and identifying the skills sets necessary to fill particular jobs, effort needs to be spent on engaging parents and shaping their mindset in recognising the importance of NEEDS BASED EDUCATION & SKILLS DEVELOPMENT ( There is still popular a belief of safety in a Government job or Banking job affording safety & a pension).

3. ULEAD is a 4 year program going up to 2021. Time for private sector to take the lead and take leadership in structuring "outcome based" training & curriculum"-

am proud to be part of ULEAD