A ceremony to felicitate students who achieved outstanding results in the 2023/2024 GCE Advanced Level Examination, under the President’s Fund programme for honouring high achievers, was held this morning (02) at the Badulla Library Auditorium.

The event was held under the patronage of Speaker of House Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne.

At this event, 240 students from the Badulla and Monaragala Districts who ranked between 1st and 10th place in six subject streams at the GCE Advanced Level examinations of 2023 and 2024 received certificates of appreciation and incentive awards of Rs. 100,000 each.

A total of Rs. 24 million from the President’s Fund has been allocated for this purpose.

Addressing the gathering, Speaker Jagath Wickramaratne stated that the present government is making a significant investment in education, emphasising that nothing is more valuable for a nation’s future than investment in education. He further said that if children contribute to the country through the knowledge they gain, the government’s investment will truly benefit the nation.

“We want you to become educated and wise. A wise person will never build an atomic bomb. If an educated person engages in fraud, that education has no value. In such a situation, only learning exists, not wisdom. Therefore, if you use your education for the betterment of the country, you will repay the nourishment and care your parents provided to raise you into who you are today,” the Speaker added.

Meanwhile, a special one-day training programme aimed at decentralising the activities of the President’s Fund was conducted yesterday (01) at the Badulla District Secretariat for officers in charge from all Divisional Secretariats in the Uva Province.