Mahinda promises to make north a knowledge hub

Saturday, 3 January 2015 03:40 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

‘Momentum’ – Jaffna brings together eminent business leaders, professionals and academics from the Northern Provinc The second leg of the ‘Momentum’ forum was held at Tilko City Hotel Jaffna yesterday where President Mahinda Rajapaksa promised to develop the Northern Province as a knowledge hub. In his attempts to recognise the region as a knowledge hub, Rajapaksa noted that 96 Mahindodaya labs have been established to date. He assured the assembled intellectuals that his Government would take all possible steps to empower the people of the north in their journey to restore the pride and glory of the northern region. He further stated that he and his Government would support the business community in the north to setup high-tech industries equipped with the state-of-the-art equipment which would open up ITC related jobs for the youth.

Rajapaksa further pledged to redress the missed opportunities of development due to the three-decade long civil war. He pointed out that special emphasis was given to the development of the Northern Province since the end of war to rehabilitate and restore infrastructure, to improve connectivity and uplift the lifestyles of the people in north. He encouraged the business leaders, professionals and academics of the north to make Jaffna a model region with their vast talent and also urged them to integrate their businesses with other regions to make full use of the opportunities presented to them by the country’s economic growth. He also urged the people of north to surge ahead with the knowledge of professionals who have contributed toward the development of Sri Lanka and are key stakeholders in the sectors of IT, healthcare and other enterprises that are well-established in the capital. The forum attracted the crème de la crème of the private and public sector’s intellectuals from various parts of the northern region who were united in their common goal of stability and sustained economic growth. Secretary to the President Lalith Weeratunge in his address presented factors propelling the development of Sri Lanka within the last decade, while Former Vice Chancellor of the University of Jaffna, Prof. P. Balasundarampillai delivered the keynote address emphasising the socio-economic development of the Northern Province. A token of appreciation was presented by the President to Pakiyarajah Darukeesan, a student from Hindu College Jaffna who obtained the best results with a Z score of 3.0722 and ranking first in the Maths stream for GCE A/L examination in 2014, while the organisers of ‘Momentum’ presented Darukeesan with an iPad as well as a cash donation. ‘Momentum’, organised by ‘Professionals for a Progressive North’ together with ‘Professionals for a Stable Sri Lanka’ has created the opportunity for many business leaders, professionals and academics to speak on one platform to evaluate the development of Sri Lanka over the past decade and share their views on shaping the future of the country.