Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya departed for the United Kingdom on Monday afternoon to attend the 22nd Annual Commonwealth Education Forum and the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) 2026 Board of Governors Meeting, the Prime Minister’s Media Division said. She left Bandaranaike International Airport at around 1.20 p.m. onboard SriLankan Airlines flight UL 403 to London, accompanied by a two-member delegation, and is scheduled to return on May 23.
According to the PMD, the visit will include several high-level academic and diplomatic engagements aimed at strengthening cooperation in education, research, development studies and international partnerships. PM Amarasuriya is scheduled to meet UK Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson at the Department for Education to discuss cooperation in education, and to hold discussions with UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper on bilateral matters.
On the sidelines of the Commonwealth Education Forum and COL Board meeting, the Prime Minister is also expected to meet Commonwealth Secretary-General Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey. She will participate in an event at the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex and attend the institution’s 60th anniversary ceremony, and address a session at the Oxford School of Global and Area Studies at the University of Oxford, followed by a Q&A with scholars and students.
The PMD said the visit was expected to strengthen Sri Lanka’s engagement with academic institutions, international development partners and Commonwealth member states, particularly in education, research, policy dialogue and capacity building. The trip follows PM Amarasuriya’s recent engagements on higher education enrollment and the resolution of the IUSF Malwana standoff earlier this week.
Sources: Newswire, Ada Derana.
