German MP visits economic and cultural coorporation projects in Sri Lanka

Enlarge image German MP Angelika Kruger-Leissner (second from right) and the Chargé d’Affaires of the German Embassy, Marja-Sirkka Einig, speaking to the students at German Tech. CGTTI Principal G.S. Manchanayake looks on. (© German Embassy Colombo) During a private stay in Sri Lanka the German Member of Parliament Angelika Kruger-Leissner, took the opportunity to visit several projects that exemplified the economic and cultural coorporation between Germany and Sri Lanka.

Mrs. Kruger-Leissner visited Ceylon German Technical Training Institute (CGTTI), the vocational training centre hailed as one of the hallmarks of German-Sri Lankan economic corporation. CGTTI, which has a partnership with a vocational training centre in Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany, trains automobile mechanics, electricians etc. Mrs. Kruger-Leissner also learnt about plans to build a similar vocational training centre, with the financial support of Germany, in Killinochchi, in the war ravaged Northern Province.

Enlarge image German MP Angelika Kruger-Leissner (third from right) and the Chargé d’Affaires of the German Embassy, Marja-Sirkka Einig, inspecting a model of the proposed German Tech campus to be built in war affected Killinochchi. (© German Embassy Colombo) Besides she met students at Royal college, which teaches German as part of their secondary school curriculum under the German partner schools program and the German cultural centre, the Goethe Institute, where she observed the language training facilities and spoke to a group of Sri Lankan artists called "Street Artists - NOMADs" who were working in collaboration with Germany artists.  Enlarge image From left, Head of Goethe Institute Björn Ketels, Chargé d’Affaires of the German Embassy, Marja-Sirkka Einig and German MP Angelika Kruger-Leissner with students from Royal College, one of the three German partner schools in Sri Lanka. (© German Embassy Colombo)

Mrs. Kruger-Leissner also had talks with representatives from the German academic exchange program (DAAD), the German government agency for international economic and technical cooperation (GIZ) and the two political foundations working in Sri Lanka.

Angelika Kruger-Leissner has been a member of the German Parliament since 1998. Since November 2009, she is the deputy chairman of the committee for culture and media. School development, education policy and labour market policy are part of her main areas of interest. She is also the deputy spokesperson of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) Parliamentary Group.