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144 QUANTIFICATION OF BENEFITS FROM ECONOMIC COOPERATION IN SOUTH ASIA<br />
students is much higher than what is charged from local<br />
students. However, IITs offer a 50% fee waiver to<br />
students from SAARC countries.<br />
Taneja et al. argue that the practices of the Sri Lanka<br />
medical council (SLMC) sometimes impose rigid conditions<br />
on Sri Lankan doctors qualified abroad. In cases<br />
where the SLMC does not recognise the foreign degree,<br />
they suggest, the Sri Lankan doctor qualified abroad<br />
has to give detailed information on the curriculum,<br />
duration, qualification of the faculty, etc. In addition,<br />
s/he has to clear an examination conducted by the<br />
medical council after which s/he is allowed provisional<br />
membership. Full membership is granted after a year<br />
of internship. In fact, they inform that Apollo in Sri<br />
Lanka found it more difficult to employ Sri Lankan<br />
doctors qualified in India than Indian doctors. On the<br />
other hand, Sri Lankan doctors passing out from any<br />
of the six recognised medical colleges in Sri Lanka are<br />
eligible for provisional membership on completion of<br />
their MBBS.<br />
The study of Taneja et al. suggests that several Sri<br />
Lankan students come to India to obtain a medical<br />
degree from medical institutions such as Kasturba<br />
Medical College, Manipal, college of dental sciences<br />
and all India institute of medical sciences (AIIMS).<br />
While the former two are private medical institutions,<br />
the latter is run and owned by the government. The<br />
private medical institutions reserve a quota of 50% for<br />
foreign students (majority of them being Sri Lankans)<br />
while at AIIMS there are limited seats for foreign students.<br />
Foreign students at the private medical institutes<br />
pay a much higher fee than local students (several times<br />
of local fees for MBBS) whereas at AIIMS the fee<br />
charged is the same for local and foreign students. The<br />
main problem faced by Sri Lankan medical students is<br />
that the Indian degree is not recognised by the SLMC<br />
unless they clear an examination in Sri Lanka after they<br />
obtain their degree from India.<br />
Taneja et al’s study has found that the qualifications<br />
obtained from India are not always recognised in the<br />
Sri Lankan job market. While some Sri Lankan students<br />
with Indian degrees have pointed out that they do not<br />
feel disadvantaged vis-à-vis local students, others have<br />
pointed out that some professional Indian degrees are<br />
not recognised in Sri Lanka. For instance, students with<br />
medical and accountancy degrees from India have to<br />
take an examination in Sri Lanka before they can<br />
practice. For engineers, Sri Lanka specifies organisations<br />
and companies for which membership with the<br />
Institute of Engineers is mandatory. Foreign engineers<br />
can acquire membership to the Institute of Engineers<br />
provided they clear the local examinations. However,<br />
where such membership is not required, foreign<br />
engineers can practice without membership.<br />
Taneja et al. also suggest that several Sri Lankans<br />
come to India for training in various disciplines. India<br />
has been extending training facilities to Sri Lanka in<br />
various professional courses under ITEC and TCS of<br />
Colombo plan (annually 70 under ITEC and 50 under<br />
Colombo plan). The major courses under these schemes<br />
are financial management, auditing and accounting,<br />
rural banking, insurance, plantation management,<br />
teacher training, textiles engineering and railways.<br />
The SLMC and the Indian Medical Association can<br />
work out mutual recognition agreements so that medical<br />
degrees from both countries should be recognised.<br />
A similar exercise could be done for dentists. However,<br />
what is urgently required is that Sri Lanka must undertake<br />
liberal commitments in the higher education sector.<br />
Sri Lanka being an important market in the region, all<br />
other South Asian countries would be interested in it.<br />
Summary of Restrictions in the Sector<br />
• No sectoral commitments<br />
• A number of restrictions under Mode 3<br />
• Foreign degrees not being recognised<br />
• Ambiguous rules at university level for private/<br />
foreign participation.<br />
Bangladesh<br />
Bangladesh has thus far not undertaken any commitments<br />
in education services in the WTO nor has it<br />
offered to do so during the ongoing services negotiations.<br />
However, Bangladesh has opened up the education<br />
sector and foreign investment is allowed. In fact,<br />
trade in education services is already taking place via<br />
all four modes in Bangladesh. As there is an enormous<br />
gap between the demand and supply of education, the<br />
country needs to supplement its efforts by seeking<br />
foreign investment. Raihan and Mahmood who have<br />
done a detailed study on various services sectors of<br />
Bangladesh suggest that in Bangladesh education is one<br />
of the basic services where market failure is common<br />
and the role of government is essential to ensure<br />
education for all (2004: 11). This particular service<br />
sector has always been a target for increased investment,<br />
both from the public and private sectors, due to the<br />
growing demand for education and education related<br />
services.<br />
Trade in education services takes place only in the<br />
tertiary sector, except for an education programme in