A book launching ceremony was held on the 4^th of May 2023 at the auditorium of the Faculty of Social Sciences to launch the book, 'The Development of Provincial and Local Government Institutions in Sri Lanka: 1833-1872’, by Emeritus Professor M. U. de Silva, a former Senior Professor at the University of Ruhuna.

He is the first postgraduate holder in History at the University of Kelaniya. The ceremony was organized by Research Centre for Social Sciences.

The event was graced by Professor M. M. Gunatilake, Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences as the chief guest and Emeritus Professor M. U. de Silva as the guest of honor. Emeritus Professor U. B. Karunananda provided a review of the book while the Director of RCSS, Professor A. G. Amarasinghe, family members and colleagues of Professor M. U. de Silva, and staff members of the Faculty of Social Sciences were also present at the occasion.

See More

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Department of Economics, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Kelaniya, and the People’s Bank on the 24^th of March 2023 at the Vice Chancellor’s Office of the university.

The objective of signing this MoU was to obtain internship opportunities for undergraduates following the Bachelor of Arts honors in Economics degree program. Accordingly, the People’s Bank agreed to provide 50 internships for undergraduates annually.     

Senior Professor Nilanthi de Silva, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya and Mr. K. K. K. Dharmathilaka, the Registrar of the University of Kelaniya signed the MoU on behalf of the University while Mr. Gihan Galaboda and Mr. Prasad Aravinda, Managers at People’s Bank, Kelaniya Branch signed the MOU representing the bank. Professor M. M. Gunathilake, Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, Professor W. M. Semasinghe, Head of the Department of Economics, Professor Nawarathna Banda, and Dr. Champika Dharmadasa were also present at the occasion. 

See More

An international conference on ‘Developmentalism Vs. Wellbeing of South Asian Societies’ was organized by the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Kelaniya, jointly with the Maharashtra Bhugolawidya Association India, Solapur University - India, Pangea Geographical Association, and Sri Lanka Association of Geographers (SLAG).

The conference was held on the 23^rd and 24^th of February 2023.

The conference provided a platform for the researchers to submit their research work under 08 sub-themes. The conference was hosted by a team of local and international academics from India, Bangladesh, and many other Asian countries, encouraging mutual understanding while ensuring links within the academic sphere.

The inauguration ceremony of the conference was held on the 23^rd of February with the participation of his excellency Mr. Gopal Baglay, High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, Snr. Prof. Nilanthi De Silva, Vice Chancellor - University of Keaniya and Dr. Mrunalini Fadnavis, Vice Chancellor - Punyashlok Ahilyadevi Holkar Solapur University, India. The keynote speaker was Mr. Abdur Rahim Siddiqui - Representative and Country Director at UN World Food Programme (WFP) Sri Lanka.  Mr. Nihal Ranasingha - Secretary of the Ministry of Education and Senior Professor Chandana P. Udawatte - Vice Chairman of the University Grants Commission the guest invitees of the conference. Emeritus Professor N. K. Dangalle and Dr. Praveen G. Saptarshi were the resource persons of the conference while Prof. Lal Mervin Dharmasiri was the conference chair.

Memorandums of Understanding regarding academics, students and field research were exchanged between the university of Kelaniya and the Solapur University of India. Moreover, post-conference excursions were arranged for the presenters from foreign countries, covering the city of Colombo and places related to the Ramayana legend in Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka with the objective of uplifting the tourism sector and the economy of Sri Lanka.

See More

A report dissemination workshop organized by the AHEAD research project (AHEAD R2 DOR HEMS KLN No.12) of the Department of Economics, University of Kelaniya was held on the 3rd of March 2023 at the Board Room of the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Kelaniya.

The theme of the workshop was ‘addressing labour market challenges for sustainable development’.

The objective of this workshop was to disseminate the findings of AHEAD-funded research on ‘The impact of Social Protection on Sustainable Development Goals’.

Mr. R. P. A. Wimalaweera, Secretary - Ministry of Labour & Foreign Employment delivered the keynote speech of the event while Dr. Roshini Jayaweera introduced the main labour market challenges with special reference to the ageing population and presented a proposal for a model adult welfare centre as a partial solution for some of the challenges. Further, Dr. Champika Dharmadasa, Ms. Vimalini Nadaraj, and Ms. Moksha discussed the challenges faced by the lower-skilled migrant workers, informal sector workers, and food security issues in Sri Lanka respectively.

The programme was conducted with the participation of more than 70 members representing different government officials and academia.

See More