Sri Lanka's human development indicators are very impressive. There are virtually no gender disparities in either literacy or school enrolment. Several sub- regional workshops were also convened in South Asia bringing together a cross section of literacy providers. Under the programme on Women's Empowerment Education, the workshop titled Towards Empowering Approaches to Literacy Education for Women, provided a platform for debate on issues relating to women's education. The definition of literacy itself is debated.
Literacy means several things to several people.
Problem of identification of the illiterate due to the ambiguous definition of illiteracy, whether it is in terms of the ability to read and write or in terms of being functional. From the point of view of the learners the relevance and effectiveness of literacy is important. The demand for literacy must come from an on going process of empowerment for women, as illiteracy is a barrier to empowerment . The learner must realise that Illiteracy severely handicaps women's access to a range of knowledge and information which lead to empowerment and in the context of empowerment, literacy is not an end in itself but a means in the struggle for change. Literacy should give people greater .access to information as this expands their opportunities for personal growth, development and empowerment.