Sunday Times 2
GCF Research Awards in Economic Development
View(s):The Gamani Corea Foundation (GCF) was established by the visionary economist of Sri Lanka Dr Gamani Corea. He devoted his entire life to promoting inclusive development and poverty eradication in the global South. His efforts transcended geo-linguistic boundaries as it was a time when emerging nation states were grappling with the harsh realities of nation building in a bipolar world. During this period, developing countries had to define their future needs by making a conceptual leap from powerless dependance to assertive aspirations.
Dr Corea saw development-related needs through a balanced interaction between the state, market and civil society. Dr Corea believed that this would be possible only through unity and a shared strategy that could help the Global South influence international negotiations as autonomous nations. A statement he made as Secretary General of UNCTAD, addressing a world conference on ‘Development in Sri Lanka’ in 1979 reveals his towering intellect and his deep humanity. To quote him, “the number of poor in the world is large and rising. The prospects of hunger and starvation are increasing. In spite of the disarray in which both thinkers and doers find themselves there is hope — a blend of pessimism of intellect and optimism of will.”
Gamini Corea Foundation is dedicated to uphold his values as a foundational mandate by encouraging research in economic development, inspiring scholars to this day.
In alignment with his enduring legacy, the Foundation inaugurated a new round of Research Awards in October 2025, (following the inaugural round in April 2024), at an event held on December 18, 2025 at the BMICH, Colombo. The programme aims to advance state-of-the-art economic research on development issues, anchored in strong theoretical frameworks and rigorous data analysis, prioritising analytic rigor over arbitrary policy choices to generate robust evidence that can inform socio-economic policy in Sri Lanka and other countries of the Global South.
The GCF promotes economics and multidisciplinary research between economics, social sciences, management, mathematics, computer science and the humanities. The 2025 Research Awards mark an important milestone as it commemorates the 100th birth anniversary of Dr Gamani Corea, which was celebrated on November 4, 2025.
Dr Gamani Corea was a founding member of the Group of 77 (currently grouping 134 member countries), the Third World Forum, and the South Centre, Geneva, Switzerland. Dr Corea’s active participation in UNCTAD, the South Commission, and later the South Centre, were vital in shaping GCF’s institutional values and philosophy. Dr Corea aimed to boost cooperation among developing countries for advocating human and development-centered work. He believed that development should improve quality of life and people’s well-being while also protecting the environment. He pursued this by organising meetings and facilitating negotiations to build common agendas and positions, recognising that individually developing countries couldn’t sufficiently influence international outcomes.
The research awards are aimed at addressing Sri Lanka’s and other developing country’s socio-economic challenges. They are meant to promote examination of the development interests of the Global South, The primary intent of the GCF is to generate knowledge for economic and human development. The research papers aim to address Sri Lanka’s socio-economic challenges giving insightful and informative perspectives. The research and the findings are the products of scholars, most of whom work in universities, think-tanks, and research institutions. The grants also serve to promote collaboration among universities and research institutions, both locally and globally, helping to build a vibrant and connected research community.
The GCF awards were a response to the numerous research proposals the Foundations received over the last months after its call for expression of interest (EOIs). The EOIs were reviewed and a call for detailed proposals from successful candidates were made at the next stage. Independent reviewers selected the research proposals. At the final stage, once the research papers are completed, they are subject to an external review process. Revisions are then suggested and reviews take place. The awardees were selected after a rigorous review process.