The news that the Government has decided to establish a medical faculty at the National School of Business Management (NSBM) has sparked debates among many groups. Despite the announcement that the proposed faculty would function under the direct supervision and regulation of the Education Ministry, Health Ministry and the Sri Lanka Medical Council, many groups point out the same old argument about private medical faculties lacking standards.

It is true that Sri Lanka’s experience with private medical faculties has not been a very successful one. It is also noteworthy that in Sri Lanka, this is not just a matter about higher education, but also a topic of discussion in political and social spheres. In the present context where doctors are leaving the country seeking better employment opportunities and students are doing the same seeking education at foreign higher educational institutes, this is also an economic concern.

In this context, to make the proposed initiative a success that benefits all, Sri Lanka should look at the matter of private medical faculties in a logical manner without succumbing to political agendas surrounding the matter. There are both pros and cons of establishing private medical faculties.

While it is true that the private education sector has fulfilled a massive lacuna created by the lack of resources and attention given to the state education sector, looking at the establishment of more private institutes as the best solution would be unwise. Firstly, with more private education institutes and sudden projects such as the proposed NSBM medical faculty, Sri Lanka will have to improve its regulatory frameworks concerning such institutes. Secondly, as a country that has faced a number of issues due to private medical faculties in the past, to prevent the recurrence of such issues, Sri Lanka should also carefully restructure and improve the existing legal and regulatory systems within which the proposed medical faculty would be established. At the same time, the authorities should pay attention to the potential impacts of such an initiative on the state education sector, because there is a possibility of lecturers ‘migrating’ to the private sector for higher pay or other perks.

In essence, while a private medical faculty could be beneficial in many ways, it needs to be done in the right manner at the right time. It is important to understand that the necessity of more education institutes is merely the beginning, and that to make private medical faculties a success, much more needs to be done and learnt.

At the same time, it is crucial to not overlook the larger, real issue here. The biggest factor that has created a necessity of private education institutes is the present condition of the state sector education institutes. Excessive competition for enrollment, inadequate resources, and brain drain of teachers have weakened the state education sector for decades, and it has become a bigger issue with the economic crisis. Therefore, while acknowledging that such inadequacies have led to an excessive demand for private educational institutes, the authorities should take steps keeping in mind that the present socio-economic situation calls for more scientific, effective and sustainable efforts. Above all, the authorities’ steps need to be genuine and not politically driven. While there is a question about how practical it is to expect such an approach from politicians, who have perpetuated and worsened this issue, the real solution lies in genuine efforts.

State medical faculties, which were once apex institutions, are today significantly underfunded and poorly resourced. While Sri Lanka is in an economic crisis, it is imperative that the Government better fund and equip the state institutions, on which Sri Lanka’s legacy of creating good medical practitioners has been forged on. To neglect the 12 state university medical faculties, while giving the green light for the private faculties to take off, could lead to further erosion of State-owned free medical education, which is the backbone of the Sri Lankan public health system.