News
Engineer brain drain not second to other professionals leaving the country
By Rathindra Kuruwita
The Association of Public Service Engineers (APSE) revealed that government departments, ministries, and local government bodies currently have only 1,000 engineers in their employ. This number represents only 66 percent of the approved cadre, according to Eng. L.S. Sooriyabandara.
Eng. Sooriyabandara, a representative of the Association of Public Service Engineers (APSE), noted that the organization comprises engineers affiliated to various departments, ministries, and local government bodies.
Explaining the current trends, he said that “while the approved cadre is 1530, the current count stands at approximately 1000 engineers. A significant portion of them has either already left the country in search of greener pastures, or are on the verge of leaving.
Sooriyabandara highlighted that the process of producing a chartered engineer requires a span of eight years. During the period, from 2000 to 2020, Sri Lanka witnessed the implementation of numerous infrastructure projects, including the construction of approximately 20 large tanks, several highways, and thousands of buildings, he noted.
“We need to maintain such constructions. For example, there are over 10,000 schools and we need to maintain the buildings to ensure that our children are safe. Now engineers are not recruited because those in power believe there are no new projects. Meanwhile one third of engineers attached to the state have left,” he said.
Sooriyabandara, who serves in the Irrigation Department, emphasized their responsibility for overseeing the consistent water supply to 800,000 acres and maintaining more than 360 major tanks. He highlighted the gravity of such a responsibility and expressed concern about the challenges posed by severe staff shortages. Furthermore, he noted that a significant number of engineers are receiving inadequate compensation for their work.
Former Assistant secretary of APSE Damith Dissanayake reported a staggering 300 percent increase in the brain drain among engineers compared to 2019. He revealed that in 2023 alone, more than 5,000 engineers overall have left Sri Lanka. Among all the professionals who departed the country in 2023, approximately 40 percent were engineers, highlighting a significant trend of skilled professionals relocating.
Dissanayake said there is the high international recognition of Sri Lankan engineering degrees, noting that engineers can relocate to 123 countries without undergoing country-specific examinations. He highlighted that the Institution of Engineers Sri Lanka (IESL) has entered into the Washington Accord. Consequently, engineering degree programmes accredited by the IESL are recognized as equivalent to four-year engineering degree programmes by other signatories to the Washington Accord.
“If a doctor wants to migrate to Australia, he or she has to sit for two exams by the Australian Medical Council. The second exam is very difficult and about 70 percent of applicants fail. But a Sri Lankan engineer does not have to sit for such an exam. It’s easier to migrate and there are always opportunities for engineers,” he said.
Dissanayake stressed the need for the government to raise the initial salary for engineers to 300,000 rupees, a significant increase from the current 79,000 rupees. While acknowledging that this might appear as an unrealistic raise, he emphasized that the repercussions of not providing a substantial salary increment to engineers could have devastating consequences.
“Even the private sector faces a shortage of engineers. At this rate, the government will have to seek the services of foreign engineers to maintain our infrastructure,” he said.
Dissanayake said the engineers also want the government to fill the large number of vacancies that exist in the system.
“Brain drain is a big problem in Sri Lanka. I am not talking about engineers alone. You look at any sector and the best professionals are leaving. No country has developed by depleting its professionals. The government must provide a living wage to workers, give them professional dignity and in the case of the government sector, it must fill the large number of vacancies that exist. Most professionals attached to the government sector are stressed because he or she now does the work of two or three people,” he said.
The Government’s ‘Rebuilding Sri Lanka’ Fund, established to provide relief and support to communities affected by Cyclone Ditwah, continues to receive financial contributions on a daily basis.
Accordingly, the Containers Transport Owners Association made a financial contribution of Rs. 1.5 million, while the Association of SriLankan Airlines Licensed Aircraft Engineers contributed Rs. 1.35 million to the Fund.
The respective cheques were formally presented to the Secretary to the President, Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, at the Presidential Secretariat on Friday (19).
The occasion was attended by W. M. S. K. Manjula, Chairman of the Containers Transport Owners Association, together with Dilip Nihal Anslem Perera and Jayantha Karunadhipathi.
Representing the Association of SriLankan Airlines Licensed Aircraft Engineers were Deshan Rajapaksa, Samudika Perera and Devshan Rodrigo handed over the cheque.
A meeting between Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya and a delegation of UNICEF representatives was held on Saturday, (December 20) at the Prime Minister’s Office.
During the meeting, the Prime Minister explained the measures taken by the Government to ensure the protection of the affected student community and to restore the damaged school system, as well as the challenges encountered in this process.
The Prime Minister stated that reopening schools located in landslide-prone areas would be extremely dangerous. Accordingly, the Government is focusing on identifying such schools and relocating them to suitable locations based on scientific assessments.
The Prime Minister further noted that financial assistance has been provided to students affected by the disaster, enabling parents to send their children back to school without an additional financial burden. Emphasizing that school is the safest place for children after their homes, the Prime Minister expressed confidence that the school environment would help restore and improve students’ mental well-being
The Prime Minister also highlighted that attention has been given to several key areas, including the relocation of disaster-affected schools, restoration of school infrastructure, merging and operating certain schools jointly, facilitating teaching and learning through digital and technological strategies, and providing special transportation facilities. She emphasized that the Government is examining these issues and is committed to finding long-term solutions.
The UNICEF representatives commended the Government’s commitment and the initiatives undertaken to restore the education sector and assured their support to the Government. Both parties also discussed working together collaboratively on future initiatives.
The meeting was attended by the UNICEF representatives to Sri Lanka Emma Brigham, Lakshmi Sureshkumar, Nishantha Subash, and Yashinka Jayasinghe, along with Secretary to the Ministry of Education Nalaka Kaluwewa, Director of Education Dakshina Kasturiarachchi, Deputy Directors Kasun Gunarathne and Udara Dikkumbura.
(Prime Minister’s Media Division)
Drug controversy:
“Setting up state-of-the-art drug testing facility will cost Rs 5 billion”
Activists call for legal action against politicians, bureaucrats
Serious questions have been raised over Sri Lanka’s drug regulatory system following revelations that the National Medicines Regulatory Authority’s (NMRA) quality control laboratory is not accredited by the Sri Lanka Accreditation Board (SLAB), casting doubt on both the reliability of local test results and the adequacy of oversight of imported medicines.
Medical and civil rights groups warn that the issue points to a systemic regulatory failure rather than an isolated lapse, with potential political and financial consequences for the State.
Chairman of the Federation of Medical and Civil Rights Professional Associations, Specialist Dr. Chamal Sanjeewa, said the controversy surrounding the Ondansetron injection, which was later found to be contaminated, had exposed deep weaknesses in drug regulation and quality assurance.
Dr. Sanjeewa said that the manufacturer had confirmed that the drug had been imported into Sri Lanka on four occasions this year, despite later being temporarily withdrawn from use. The drug was manufactured in India in November 2024 and in May and August 2025, and imported to Sri Lanka in February, July and September. On each occasion, 67,600 phials were procured.
Dr. Sanjeewa said the company had informed the NMRA that the drug was tested in Indian laboratories, prior to shipment, and passed all required quality checks. The manufacturer reportedly tested the injections against 10 parameters, including basic quality standards,
pH value, visual appearance, component composition, quantity per phial, sterility levels, presence of other substances, bacterial toxin levels and spectral variations.
According to documents submitted to the NMRA, no bacterial toxins were detected in the original samples, and the reported toxin levels were within European safety limits of less than 9.9 international units per milligram.
Dr. Sanjeewa said the credibility of local regulatory oversight had come under scrutiny, noting that the NMRA’s quality control laboratory was not SLAB-accredited. He said establishing a fully equipped, internationally accredited laboratory would cost nearly Rs. 5 billion.
He warned that the failure to invest in such a facility could have grave consequences, including continued loss of life due to substandard medicines and the inability of the State to recover large sums of public funds paid to pharmaceutical companies for defective drugs.
“If urgent steps are not taken, public money will continue to be lost and accountability will remain elusive,” Dr. Sanjeewa said.
He added that if it was ultimately confirmed that the drug did not contain bacterial toxins at the time it entered Sri Lanka, the fallout would be even more damaging, severely undermining the credibility of the country’s health system and exposing weaknesses in health administration.
Dr. Sanjeewa said public trust in the health sector had already been eroded and called for legal action against all politicians and public officials responsible for regulatory failures linked to the incident.
by Chaminda Silva ✍️
Duffy, Ajaz rip through West Indies as New Zealand seal series 2-0
Financial contributions received for ‘Rebuilding Sri Lanka’ Fund
UNICEF representatives and PM discuss rebuilding schools affected by the Disaster
A few showers may occur in the Uva province and in Ampara, Batticaloa, Matale, Nuwara-Eliya, and Hambantota districts
NMRA laboratory lacks SLAB accreditation
Air quality deteriorating in Sri Lanka
‘Dates have the highest sugar content to fight Coronavirus’
Sunday Island 27 December – Headlines
#SundayIsland 17th December – Headlines
Sunday Island – 28th March
Sunday Island Headlines – 21 March
Sunday Island – 21st February – Headlines
-
Midweek Review6 days agoHow massive Akuregoda defence complex was built with proceeds from sale of Galle Face land to Shangri-La
-
News5 days agoPope fires broadside: ‘The Holy See won’t be a silent bystander to the grave disparities, injustices, and fundamental human rights violations’
-
News5 days agoPakistan hands over 200 tonnes of humanitarian aid to Lanka
-
Business4 days agoUnlocking Sri Lanka’s hidden wealth: A $2 billion mineral opportunity awaits
-
News6 days agoBurnt elephant dies after delayed rescue; activists demand arrests
-
Editorial6 days agoColombo Port facing strategic neglect
-
News4 days agoArmy engineers set up new Nayaru emergency bridge
-
News6 days agoSri Lanka, Romania discuss illegal recruitment, etc.