Sri Lanka’s private universities came under sharp scrutiny yesterday as the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Education, Manpower and Human Capital raised alarm over substandard degree programmes and gaps in regulatory oversight.
Chaired by MP Hesha Withanage, the Committee met in Parliament to examine the operation of private higher education institutions and their recognition by the University Grants Commission (UGC). Withanage warned that a number of institutions were offering degrees of “inadequate quality,” driven more by profit than by educational standards. He stressed that the entire process—from student admissions to awarding degrees—must remain firmly under UGC supervision.
UGC’s Vice Chair echoed these concerns, calling for the establishment of a dedicated Higher Education Commission to regulate and monitor private universities. Such a body, he said, would help build comprehensive data systems, strengthen global university links, and ensure access to essential information on institutional standards and programme quality—critical tools for making informed decisions on granting approval to new private universities. His views were endorsed by the Additional Secretary (Non-State Higher Education) of the Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Training, as well as other UGC officials.
The Committee also reviewed issues concerning state universities, foreign scholarship schemes, and related higher education matters.
MPs Krishnan Keleichelvi, Nilusha Lakmali Gamage, Chanaka Madugoda, Thurairasa Ravikaran, and Sunil Rajapaksha attended the meeting, alongside officials from the Ministry of Education and the UGC.