The government believes in creating a developed human resource base by encouraging educational investments to rebuild the nation, Prime Minister Dr Harini Amarasuriya stated.

The Prime Minister made these remarks today (13) at the Isurupaya Ministry of Education premises during the launch of a scholarship programme.

This initiative provides students who excelled in the 2024 Advanced Level examinations the opportunity to pursue undergraduate degrees at top-tier global universities.

This scholarship scheme defines the future vision of the country, she noted.

An investment of Rs. 4 billion is expected for this project.

The program plans to award foreign scholarships to a total of 200 students between 2025 and 2033.

For the initial 2025/26 academic year, 32 students have already been selected, with 9 of them already enrolled in world-class universities such as Sydney, Melbourne, and Monash in Australia, and Auckland in New Zealand.

A highly transparent selection process was followed, requiring students to gain admission to universities ranked within the top 500 globally (QS, THE, or ARWU), according to the Prime Minister’s Media Division. Financial allocations reach up to Rs. 20 million per student annually, totaling Rs. 80 million for a full four-year degree.

Speaking further, Prime Minister Dr Harini Amarasuriya said:

"Today is a day we can all be proud of at the Ministry of Education. We awarded scholarships to 33 students who achieved high results in the Advanced Level exams to study abroad, marking the first stage of a promise made in our policy statement. Implementing this was not easy despite having the idea; it required lengthy discussions regarding student selection, maintaining transparency, and choosing high-quality universities.

This is not an ordinary scholarship program; it is a program that defines our country's future vision. It offers students the chance to study at the world's best universities. Therefore, selected students must possess leadership qualities, personality, and resilience alongside academic excellence.

To build our country, we need good citizens and a human resource base capable of taking the nation forward. Countries like Singapore, China, and Malaysia lead the world because they invested in building human resources; we must follow that process.

We believe these scholars should become links in the overall social transformation of the country, creating a qualitative impact beyond just being graduates. This is a long-term investment. We expect you to use your personality to help other students and lead teams.

You must resolve not to give up your journey despite obstacles like climate change, cultural factors, or being away from loved ones. Use those challenges to develop leadership skills and turn difficult experiences into opportunities. Study new cultures, technologies, and knowledge systems, and become thinkers who consider how to use them to build our nation.

Try to gain as much experience as possible. Develop communication skills, empathy, team management, and understanding of others, as that is how the impact we expect from you can be achieved. We will not leave you alone; we are ready to intervene through embassies during any crisis. To lead the country toward social transformation, we must work collectively and protect one another. We must create leaders capable of guiding not just Sri Lanka, but the whole world, toward a people-friendly path."