The University of Hamburg in collaboration with Sri Lanka Association in Hamburg, Germany, organized the 11th South Asia Day at the University. This is the 11th successive year the university organized the event focusing on South Asia. Sri Lanka became partner country with the university for this year as Sri Lanka and Germany celebrating the 60th anniversary of their diplomatic relations.
Ambassadors and members of the diplomatic community from Embassies of South Asian countries accredited to Germany, Dr.Bernd Egert, Councillor of State of the Ministry of Economy, Transport and Innovation of Hamburg, the Hon. Consul of Sri Lanka for Hamburg Mr. Olav .C . Ellerbrock, Dr. Harunaga Isaacson, Head of the Department of India and Tibet as well as staff and students of the University, participated in the event.
Dr. Bernd Egert and the Ambassador declared open the Sri Lankan pavilion. Rosenkinder, an organization helping children in Sri Lanka, the Sri Lanka Association and Friends of Sri Lanka represented their projects carried out in Sri Lanka at the pavilion. Photographs taken by the renowned Sri Lanka photographer Athula Dissanayake and Sri Lankan tourism promotional material were showcased in the pavilion.
H. E the Ambassador made a representation on “the role of academic and vocational training in shaping social change, social justice and economic success in perspective of Sri Lanka”. In his presentation, the Ambassador briefed the audience on the rich heredity of Sri Lanka in passing technical knowledge from generation to generation. H.E the Ambassador further said that Sri Lanka is shifting from a traditional education system to a system of innovation and employability by introducing the necessary infrastructure in order to make Sri Lanka a regional knowledge hub and produce skilled youth for the job market.
“The vision of our Government is to create a society where there is no person without skill and our government is aiming to increase ICT literacy from 35 to 75 per cent by 2016, Sri Lanka needs the support of the developed countries like Germany in our efforts,” the Ambassador mentioned. The Ambassador also thanked the German government for establishing the Vocational Training Centre in Kilinochchi and other technical education facilities.
The university in collaboration with Breitengrad, a Sri Lanka restaurant organized Sri Lankan night at the University. The well-known Kandian dancer and teacher Sulakshi Fonseka and Almut Jeyaweera, a German national who teaches and performs Kandian Dance did a wonderful performance. Restaurant Breitengrad organized a Sri Lankan buffet. Mr. Jayantha Gomes, a well-known Sri Lankan artist living in Germany, represented Sri Lanka with contemporary fine arts in South Asia.
H. E. the Ambassador thanked Sri Lanka Association in Hamburg, Rosenkinder, the restaurant Beitengrad and the information website suedasien.info for the cooperation in organizing the event. He also thanked the Senate Chancery of Hamburg, Acgar Consultants, Deichmann and the traditional tree trading company Hälssen Lyon for their sponsorship of the event.
