COLOMBO— Thirty-four new U.S. Peace Corps Trainee Volunteers arrived in Sri Lanka this week, beginning their journey toward two years of service. The Americans will first complete intensive training in Sinhala or Tamil, Sri Lankan culture, and American English-language teaching before taking the Peace Corps Pledge of Service in November. After swearing in, they will serve in the Northern and North Central Provinces, working with Sri Lankan teachers and students to expand American English education, while living with Sri Lankan host families and becoming part of their local communities.
U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka Eric Meyer welcomed the new trainees at the Peace Corps office in Colombo. “The strongest connections between our countries are built person to person, and Peace Corps puts Americans right at the heart of that work,” Ambassador Meyer said. “As they become part of the communities they serve, these new Volunteers will build skills and connections that can open doors to economic opportunity and bring our two democracies closer together across the Indo-Pacific.”
Peace Corps service in Sri Lanka dates to 1962, when the first American Volunteers arrived at the invitation of the Government of Sri Lanka. More than 500 Americans have served in the country in education, health, agriculture, community development, and tsunami recovery. The program was formally reestablished in 2018 with a renewed focus on English-language education. This newest group will carry that more than six-decade tradition forward when they begin service in Sri Lankan communities later this year.
