The first program in the island of the introductory workshop on Empowerment of Public Officials with Digital Technology (NextGenGov) started today (02) in the morning at the District Secretariat Auditorium under the chairmanship of the Minister of State for Technology Mr. Kanaka Herath.

It is expected to make the public service an efficient and effective service through this program which is jointly carried out by the State Ministry of Technology, the Information and Communication Technology Agency, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the District Secretariat.

State Minister Mr. Kanaka Herath, who spoke here, said that he is happy to start the first workshop in his district at a time when there is a strong need to digitize government institutions in moving the country towards a digital economy. Further, the Minister stated that there is currently work to be done to conduct training programs for selected officers of government institutions in the district, as well as to add information technology to the curricula for students studying higher education and arts streams, students who fail in general education as well as students who are undergoing vocational training.

Kegalle District Governor/District Secretary Mr. Mahinda S. Weerasooriya said that the economic development of the country is greatly supported by the use of technology for the work of government institutions. Digitization is important to reduce delays and inconveniences in government institutions as well as to make large economic savings.

Resource contribution for this workshop was provided by Senior Manager of Information and Communication Technology Agency Mr. Chamendra Perera and Mrs. Bhagya Kumarasinghe, a group of officials from the Ministry of Home Affairs.

On that occasion, a group of staff officers including assistant regional secretaries, heads of other government departments and information technology officers of Kegalle district participated.