Its overall goal is to equipping young leaders who are interested and engaged in politics with knowledge, skills and information that is essential to deal with the challenges of post-war reconciliation and development.
Since 2021, the institute was formally re-established as Institute of Politics and has been able to provide academic programmes and courses for numerous persons who interested to study politics. The main objectives of this initiation are, to theoretically and practically empower the politically & socially active personnel, to develop skills to build good political & social leadership and to plant positive attitudes within the personnel to secure professionalism within politics.
Vision
Mission
Adopting democratic governance at all levels for nation building
Ensuring economic development that will equitably benefit all socio-economic groups
Safeguarding the rights of all communities in a context where social harmony and national reconciliation prevails educating the young and the adult in active and enlightened citizenship
Our Objectives
Thematic Areas
Nation/State Building
Even after 74 years of Independence, Sri Lanka is still debating about what kind of country/nation/state we want to be. We would be supporting all exercises which unify people of this country so that Sri Lanka will be politically stable and viable in the long run as a state.
Democracy
Governance & Participation
Sri Lankan government system which is 3 tier, Central, Provincial & Local Government theoretically open itself for more participation of the public in the same. The country has been undergoing changes in governance structures particularly since 2015. IOP will carry out it work to promote Public Policies, Laws, Norms and Cultures that would promote better governance and participation of general public, processes of interaction and decision-making among the actors.
Development
Sri Lanka is middle income country and considering world experiences and the international debts we carry, some say we may get stuck in the middle income trap. Therefore we need to have appropriate economic development plans, addressing poverty alleviation strategies, carrying out more prudent environmental governance and of course, making sure that all the stake holders will upheld the Sustainable Development Goals.
Strategic Activities
Develop & carry out current flagship course on governance
Carry out staff capacity building activities
Develop stand alone courses on selected topics targeting specific target groups
Develop reading materials / course materials
Carry out research symposium for young scholars on political topics
Arrange coaching/mentoring sessions for elected members
Implement activities/projects targeting local governance and provincial council system to make sure citizen engagement with such systems
Carry out research activities on selected topics
Develop flagship courses along to support the thematic areas
Publish research /white papers on selected issues in social media for wider public access
Offer internship / research fellowships for young scholars
Submit research papers/findings to the library of the Parliament
Forge collaboration with local & international similar institutes / academia and universities
Arrange workshops / dialogue sessions for officials, elected members and senior party members / political activist on selected topics
Promote and engage in action research for policy development
Assign research interns to offices of elected members and other various political institutes
Submit alternatives/options on selected issues to elected members at various levels.
Seek accreditation for IOP courses from local & overseas accreditation institutes
Explore and carry out public interests litigations where possible for policy changes
Engaged with causes/movements and civil society organisation in solidarity
Have IOP interns, young scholars appointed to work closely with offices of elected members at various levels.
Engage with elected members on selected topics supporting them with info/data and analysis
Arrange round table discussions for officials
Arrange public meetings or dialogue groups for interested public or civil society members on selected topics
Develop online education/training system (E-learning)
Management Structure
The first tier of management is IOP Board of Directors, consisting of seven well experienced and veteran professionals.
