Pera dental faculty gets a citation

By L.B.Senaratne

The Faculty of Dental Sciences of the Peradeniya University has been cited as the Centre of Excellence for Training of Post Graduate Dental Surgeons in South East Asia. Dental surgeons from Tanzania, Kenya, Maldives, Myanmar, Cambodia, Nepal and Sri Lanka have been attending the training programmes for the last five years at the Peradeniya Faculty.

Certificates were presented, before a distinguished gathering, to those who completed the final course. The chief guest was the Peradeniya University Vice Chancellor Prof. Harischandra Abeygoonasekera. Prof. Abeygoonesekara said the Faculty of Dental Sciences was the best of the faculties in the University and was well equipped for post graduate work and comes within the concept of the ten year programme initiated by the Peradeniya University.

He said that this is the last of the training programmes initiated five years ago with the assistance of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). He said he hoped the programme would be extended by JICA in the years following.

The Dental Sciences Faculty Dean Prof. Prasad Amaratunge said that the Faculty was fully geared to admit post graduate dentists for training in various disciplines and he hoped that the graduates who were receiving their certificates would hasten to inform their colleagues abroad of the quality of the programmes. He added that the Faculty was well equipped with material and lecturers.

JICA Deputy Resident Ms.Yasuko Nishino said she was happy this programme had ended with a high quality and added Japan would continue to support various fields in education in Sri Lanka. Among the others who spoke were the Chief Programme Advisor Dr.Toru Nagao. Project coordinator Dr. J.A.V.P.Jayasinghe proposed the vote of thanks. Professor Abeygoonesekera, Ms. Nishino and Dr. Jayasinghe presented the certificates.