Academy of International Trade and Transport to hold its first ever awards tonight

Friday, 25 September 2020 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Academy of International Trade and Transport is a reputed education body that focuses on the knowledge required by the professionals of the logistics and freight forwarding industry. AITT is the only entity authorized to carry out the FIATA Diploma in Sri Lanka and it also conducts the Foundation Course in Multi Modal Transport and Logistics and the Certificate Course in Freight Forwarding and Multi Modal Transport. Kingsley Abeywickrama was appointed in January 2020 and the interest shown by prospective students has grown remarkably since then.

FIATA and the FIATA Diploma

The re-validation certificate is issued based on past performance and is reviewed once every four years. The revalidation meeting was held at the FIATA World Congress in September 2019 in Cape Town, South Africa. FIATA or the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations is a non-governmental organisation that works towards the betterment of its member associations which hail from over 150 countries. It is the regulatory body that directs and governs the global industry and it provides a platform for formal professional advancement of those in the field. The FIATA Diploma which is offered in Sri Lanka under the purview of FIATA (global) is internationally acclaimed and accepted. Those who complete the examinations successfully are able to secure employment in freight forwarding, logistics, shipping and even air transport.

Awards Ceremony

For the first time in four years, an awards ceremony has been planned to recognise the accomplishments of the hundred students who completed the three courses in 2020. This is the first time that the awards ceremony is being planned at an elite venue such as the Shangri La, Colombo, and the intention is to boost the image of the programs while also adding more value to the qualification that the students worked hard to earn for themselves. Top performers will be given scholarships to continue their studies. SLFFA plans to make the awards ceremony an annual event while it continues to work on increasing the numbers enrolled year on year.

This year 66 students will be awarded at a special awards ceremony of which six of the best students will be awarded and offered scholarships to follow the next level of courses at AITT.

Digital Learning

Discussions are underway to create a dedicated website for students and potential students of the three programs. A digital marketing campaign is also scheduled to be carried out to increase the number of students in the near future.

Lessons during Lockdown

During lockdown, AITT was forced to carry out lessons through Zoom and it turned out to be a resounding success, with more and more students joining the course as it was simple to access the classes from their hometowns. Stemming from the success of these programs, AITT hopes to continue offering online classes and plans to reach out to distant cities such as Trincomalee and Hambantota for potential students.