University–Industry Collaboration in Sri Lanka — A Developing Country Perspective

Many advanced economies are at the forefront of the growth of university–industry (U–I) collaborations. But many developing countries have yet to fully implement this type of important linkage phenomenon. We report empirical findings from our study conducted in Sri Lanka to provide more explanations on the nature of U–I collaboration in developing countries. We used multiple methods to collect empirical data, namely a questionnaire survey, interviews with university academic staff and a few company managers, held focus group workshops and exploited secondary data on national government sponsorship initiatives linked to U–I collaborations. This paper discusses key practical implications around current modes of U–I collaborations, barriers to collaboration and funding of collaborations, which provide a number of valuable lessons for the advancement of knowledge.