The Hon. (Dr.) Hiniduma Sunil Senevi - Minister of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Speaker, the answers are as follows:

¶ 02 (a) (i) There is no training centre. (ii) Although there is no formal training centre, the Department of Muslim Religious and Cultural Affairs organizes and conducts various annual training programmes for Arabic school teachers. A new curriculum for Arabic schools is currently under revision. Upon its approval, training will be integrated into the education framework to provide the necessary training. As informed earlier, the curriculum is at its final stage at the Department of Education. We warmly welcome the children represented by Muslim schools who are awaiting this.

¶ 03 (b) (i) There is no training centre. (ii) Although there are no formal training centres, relevant Imams educated in Arabic schools receive training and are then assigned to Arabic schools and mosques in the role of Imam; thus, they receive appropriate training.

¶ 04 (c) With the introduction of the new curriculum, we aim to further develop the educational sphere of Arabic schools and provide higher-quality training for teachers. In addition to the ongoing annual training programmes, I will pay special attention to establishing a dedicated training centre. Currently, there is no such centre and no prior allocations were made for one; we intend to proceed with establishing it.

¶ 05 (d) Not applicable.