Friday Sep 18, 2026
Friday Sep 18, 2026
Friday, 18 September 2026 00:04 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the implementation of 39 new development projects aimed at upgrading infrastructure across Government health service institutions, including hospitals, as part of a broader push to address long-standing infrastructure gaps and modernise health service facilities.
Cabinet Spokesman and Health Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa said earlier this week the projects stem from a review of 41 proposals submitted during 2025 and 2026, evaluated by the Department of National Planning. Following that evaluation, the Department recommended the projects be initiated from 2027, and they have since been incorporated into the Public Investment Program for 2027–2031.
“Of the 41 proposals reviewed, 39 were assessed as ready for implementation, with provisions for these to be allocated through the 2027 Budget,” Dr. Jayatissa said at the weekly post-Cabinet media briefing.
He said the 41 proposals focus on infrastructure development at tertiary-level institutions, including district, teaching, national and specialised hospitals.
Arogya centres modelled on global primary care push
Turning to the Government’s ‘Arogya’ wellness centre initiative, Dr. Jayatissa framed it as part of a decades-old global consensus on strengthening primary healthcare, tracing the approach back nearly five decades to the WHO’s Alma-Ata Declaration.
Citing India’s Ayushman Bharat wellness centres as a reference model, he said Sri Lanka’s Arogyaya centres are intended to extend coverage to hospitals that were left out even under the World Bank-funded healthcare project of 2018–2019, while also covering provincial hospitals and B- and C-level facilities.
“Tertiary-level hospitals have reached capacity, particularly in OPD and clinic services, with patients often travelling long distances for care that could be delivered closer to home. The aim is to establish primary care facilities within a 1–2 kilometre radius, each designed to serve a defined population of around 10,000 patients,” he explained.
Leveraging advances in ICT, Dr. Jayatissa said the Government hopes to issue individuals a health number linked to their National Identity Card (NIC) number, enabling the maintenance of electronic health (e-health) records and allowing patients to be directed from primary care facilities to secondary, tertiary or specialised hospitals as needed.
Stating that the 2026 Budget allocated Rs. 1,500 million for this initiative, he said he hoped the Government would increase that allocation in the upcoming Budget 2027.
“Through this system, the Government intends to gradually reduce the patient population served per primary care centre from 10,000 to 5,000,” he added.
On staffing, Dr. Jayatissa said 260 Public Health Nursing Officers (PHNOs) have already been trained, with another 300 currently undergoing training. “We also plan to recruit an additional 500 PHNOs to support the rollout of primary healthcare service centres,” he added.
