President Rajapaksa declares open new NIBM Branch in Kandy

By Aruni Amarasinghe – Pix by: Chandana Perera

President Mahinda Rajapaksa declared open the new Kandy branch of the National Institute of Business Management (NIBM) at Asgiriya Road, Kandy this morning on 20 January.

This fully air conditioned, newly constructed centre which is equipped with a modern computer labs, libraries, study rooms and comfortable class room facilities will to cater to more than 300 students at a time. The Kandy Centre offers IT and Management courses to school leavers as well as to mature, employed students.

NIBM is one of the main prime education institutions in the Management and Information Technology sector in Sri Lanka. It functions under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Skills Development. With a new vision and future global demands focused mission launched by the Minister of Youth Affairs and Skills Development, Dullas Alahapperuma to introduce a modern youth equipped with useful IT skills to the 21^st Century, NIBM has achieved many targets in the last couple of years. It is evident that NIBM recently won the first place among institutions that provide international standard quality services while brightening future prospects of the country.

The new NIBM Kandy branch offers the opportunity of studying internationally recognised quality courses in Management, Computer Science and English language for school leavers and working professionals, by qualified lecturers within a government institution. There are Diplomas, Higher National Diplomas, Advanced Diplomas and Certificate courses available and offer 15 courses in Management Information Systems Division and 38 courses in Productive & Management Development Division. In the discipline IT, NIBM offers BSc in MIS in collaboration with the University of Ireland, a Higher Diploma in Computer Systems Design, a Diploma in Computer Systems Design and many Certificate courses to cater to different needs as well as to ensure students with lesser entry qualifications to National Universities. They are able to work towards a well recognized degree in MIS from Europe.

The NIBM with its legacy of 44 years in excellence in education of training and development has plans to develop its IT and management training in other key districts to meet the needs of the youth and those of the industry, for qualified and trained personnel. To achieve that target NIBM has already setup Regional Centres in Kurunegala and Galle while the main campus operating in Colombo, ensuring that quality training is available to a wider range and a greater number of students.

Minister Dullas Alahapperuma, Deputy Minister Duminda Dissanayake, Governor of the Central Province Tikiri Kobbekaduwa, Chief Minister of the Central Province, Sarath Ekanayake, Ministers, Parliamentarians, dignitaries, Chief of Staff- Presidential Secretariat, Gamini Senerath, Secretary of the Youth Affairs Ministry, K.A.Thilakaratne and Director General of the Institute Dr. E.A. Weerasinghe were amongst those who participated at the inauguration of the Kandy branch.