[5:13 pm, 25/11/2022] Rasooldeen: COLOMBO: The Global Korea Scholarship (GKS) Alumni Reunion and Annual General Meeting was held on
Tuesday, November 22 at Jetwing Colombo 7. The annual event was a wonderful occasion bringing all facets of the alumni community together including the future GKS participants in Sri Lanka. This year, Korean Envoy H.E. Santhush Woonjin JEONG graced the occasion as the Chief Guest while many eminent academic dignitaries attended the reunion including Senior Professor Nilanthi de Silva, Vice Chancellor of University of Kelaniya and Senior Professor H.D. Karunaratne, Vice Chancellor of University of Colombo. President Dr. Tharanga Ranasinghe and office bearers of the GKS Alumni graciously welcomed the Chief Guest and other special guests to the event.
Delivering the congratulatory remarks, Korean Envoy H.E. Santhush Woonjin JEONG stated that “I am indeed delighted to be in the presence of Senior Professor Nilanthi de Silva, Vice Chancellor of University of Kelaniya, the epicentre of the university of modern languages including the Korean language and Senior Professor H.D. Karunaratne, Vice Chancellor of University of Colombo, that has also recently begun to teach the Korean language.” The cultural and educational exchanges play a key role in strengthening Korea-Sri Lanka bilateral relations. I am very happy to note that the GKS Alumni Family has continued to expand over the years. I consider the GKS Alumni as a precious asset that has contributed to building bridges of communication and friendship, fostering rich educational ties between Korea and Sri Lanka. Your keen interest and gratitude for Korea and the Korean culture are reflections of the positive educational experience you have had in Korea and the robust bilateral cooperation shared by our two countries.”
Senior Professor Nilanthi de Silva Vice Chancellor of University of Kelaniya and Senior Professor H.D. Karunaratne Vice Chancellor of University of Colombo delivered their congratulations on this memorable occasion. While admiring the remarkable progress Korea has made in terms of economic and social development, they also emphasised the importance of learning the Korean language as an an important stepping stone to strengthen bilateral cooperation between Korea and Sri Lanka.
Dr. Aruna Ranaweera Past President of the GKS Alumni shared valuable insights on ‘Research and Innovations for Economic Resilience and Sustainability, South Korean perspective and GKS for human capital development.’ This timely and meaningful presentation elaborated on Korea’s success story towards economic development and ways in which Sri Lanka could emulate Korea’s development journey. Dr. Ananda Karunarathne, Senior Lecturer of the University of Colombo and a member of the GKS Alumni also presented insightful advice on ways in which his academic experiences in Korea have shaped his career and helped the development in knowledge production and dissemination. The informative presentations reflected their love and appreciation to Korea and their enjoyable educational experience in Korea.
Moreover, the evening composed of many cultural performances that impressed the audience. Students of the Korean language unit, Department of Modern Languages, University of Kelaniya performed ‘Ganggangsullae’ an ancient Korean and a cultural symbol of Korea. Korean folksongs along the genres of ‘Arirang,’ a UNESCO intangible heritage and ‘Onara’ were performed by Ms. Chandani Warushakoon from the Department of Cultural Affairs. Mr. Theja Suranjan Dunusinghe from the Ministry of Sports demonstrated ‘Taekkyeon,’ a traditional Korean Martial Art that was inscribed in 2011 on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity- the first time in history a …
[5:16 pm, 25/11/2022] Rasooldeen: Visa charges for several categories increased
COLOMBO : Visa charges for several categories including the issuance of dual citizenship and issuance of visas for children of Sri Lankan parents holding foreign passports have been raised, the Department of Immigration & Emigration says.
The increased rates will be effective from December 01.
Accordingly, the fee to issue dual citizenship under the Citizenship Act has been raised to USD 2,000 from LKR 345,000.
Meanwhile, the fee levied for the issuance of dual citizenship to a spouse/child under 22 years of age applicants who are entitled to dual citizenship has been increased from USD 500 LKR 57,000.
Further, the fee to obtain electronic travel authorization online and electronic travel authorization on arrival has also been raised to USD 50 and USD 60, respectively, for tourists.
The charge for the issuance of visas for children of Sri Lankan parents holding a foreign passport has also been amended to USD 150. Earlier, this service was provided free of charge for children less than 16 years of age.ada derana
