“Suwa Seriya” ambulances to be increased from 272 to 400

A review of the projects implemented under the 2025 budgetary allocations for the Ministry of Health and Mass Media, together with a pre-budget discussion for the year 2026, was held yesterday (19) at the Presidential Secretariat under the patronage of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.

The discussion broadly scrutinized the allocations made for 41 institutions under four departments of the Ministry of Health and Mass Media, as well as the progress of projects implemented accordingly.

The President instructed officials to focus special attention in the upcoming budget on strengthening primary healthcare services. He also reviewed the ongoing programme for developing Primary Health Centres. It was revealed that currently one Primary Health Centre operates per 30,000 people; the plan is to improve one centre per 10,000 people.

Discussions were held on organisational and structural reforms in the health service to match current technological and social conditions. Attention was also focused on the construction works within the health sector and the issues that have emerged there.

The meeting addressed the key issue of medical equipment procurement and considered updating procurement guidelines, including those applicable to the Ayurvedic sector. Plans to enhance facilities of the National Medicines Regulatory Authority to ensure the quality of medicines purchased were also discussed.

The President instructed officials to ensure that essential vehicles required for services such as the National Blood Transfusion Service are acquired within this year itself.

He further emphasised the need for transformation not only in the physical resources of the health service but also in human resources, in response to technological advancement and population growth. It was also noted that a new National Health Policy and Strategic Plan are scheduled to be launched next year.

The President pointed out the importance of effectively using foreign aid and grants to deliver the intended benefits to the people and suggested that issues arising at provincial level be resolved through dialogue.

Attention was also drawn to ensuring the credibility of health-related donations, with a proposal to introduce a digital mechanism that confirms reliability for both donors and recipients.

It was revealed that the “Suwa Seriya” ambulance service, currently operational in different parts of the country, will be further expanded from 272 ambulances to 400.

Future plans relating to the Ministry of Mass Media were also discussed. The President stated that intervention to shape social attitudes is a responsibility of state media. Accordingly, he instructed officials to present a plan to engage state media in this process, with allocations to be set aside for this purpose in the upcoming budget.

Extensive discussion was also held on modernising the Postal Service to suit present day requirements. The need to transform it into a new model by integrating courier services and similar facilities with modern technology was underlined.

The President noted that the problem in the past had been insufficient budgetary allocations for necessary projects. However, in contrast, the most recent budget has allocated adequate provisions for all sectors. He stressed the importance of properly utilizing these allocations during the financial year into the intended projects so that the public receive the maximum benefits.

Minister of Health and Mass Media Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa, Secretary to the President Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma, Secretary to the Ministry of Health and Mass Media Dr. Anil Jasinghe, Senior Additional Secretaries to the President Russell Aponsu and Kapila Janaka Bandara, along with several senior officials of the Ministry of Health and Mass Media, were present on this occasion.