Be partners in development
President Mahinda Rajapaksa addressing over 5,000 young stakeholders at the Sugathadasa Stadium during the launch of the International Year of Youth in Sri Lanka (August 2010 – 2011) yesterday, proclaimed that the country’s youth were not only the leaders of tomorrow, but also the partners of today in propagating the nation’s development, peace and social change. He said that the responsibility of taking the country forward in the path of social and economic prosperity while preserving the hard won freedom and peace is vested with the young generation. The International Year of Youth has been proclaimed at a time when the Sri Lankan youth’s hopes and aspirations were coming into fruition. In this context Sri Lanka as a whole has more responsibility than others to join the Year of Youth with new hope and vigour, he added. President Rajapaksa addressing local youth as well as international representatives who had packed the Stadium noted that this year’s theme ’Dialogue and Mutual Understanding’ was very relevant to the present era and more so in the Sri Lankan context. He said that he was happy to note the cheerful smiles on the faces of youth and reminded the gathering that this was not the case one year back. Read more:www.dailynews.lk/2010/08/13/news01.asp