The COVID-19 Health and Social Security Fund has allocated Rs. 36,605,812.00 to the Ministry of Health and Indigenous Medical Services to carry out essential PCR tests.

Chairman of the Management Committee of the Fund and the Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka Prof. W.D Lakshman handed over the cheque pertaining to the allocation to the Secretary to the Ministry of Health Major General Consultant (Dr.) Sanjeewa Munasinghe today (24).

The money will be utilized to conduct PCR tests and health security consultation programmes.

Rs. 34,105,812.00 will be spent to purchase test kits for the PCR tests conducted by the University of Sri Jayewardenepura at the request of the Ministry of Health and Indigenous Medical Services. Rs. 2.5 million has been allocated to purchase emergency and essential laboratory equipment with the aim of increasing the capacity of PCR tests conducted by the University of Jaffna.

COVID-19 Fund’s balance has now surpassed Rs. 1,525 million.

The COVID-19 Fund’s money have been released to the Director General of Health Services to facilitate measures taken to combat COVID-19 such as to purchase drugs, equipment and to conduct medical tests.

Following corporate, individual donations and direct deposits, ‘ITUKAMA’ COVID-19 Healthcare and Social Security Fund balance has now surpassed Rs. 1491 million.

Girl child W.G. Jayani Thilakshana Karunaratne has donated Rs. 3,000 to the fund. This sum was handed over to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa at the Presidential Secretariat.

In addition, Ceylon Shipping Corporation Rs. 196,683.50, Sri Lanka Ports Authority Rs. 18,615,544.29, Health Workers of Dambulla Municipal Council  Rs. 76,135.79, girl child S.A. Vihanga Dahamsiri Senerath Rs. 2,364, Department of Education, Central Province Rs. 10,581,510.40, Public Officers of Central Province  Rs. 133,666.52, Mr. Gunathilaka Bandara Rs.5, 000, Mr. R.R. Nawarathna Rs.5,000, Ukuwela Pradeshiya Sabha Member M.G.M. Jayampathi Atipola Rs.15,000 and girl child W.M.K. Senuri Prabodhini Nawaratne Rs. 180 donated to the Fund. These donations were handed over to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

The Kandy National Hospital Rs. 2,399,778.50, Brantel Lanka (Pvt) Ltd Rs. 200,000, Ministry of Fisheries & Aquatic Resources Development Rs. 187,669, Olcott Mawatha Kelepola Small Traders Welfare Society Rs. 50,000, Department of Pensions Rs. 195,402.32, Ministry of Fisheries & Aquatic Resources Development Rs. 217,372.83, Puttalam Divisional Secretariat Rs. 105,000, Dr. R.M.J. Nawinna Rs. 200,000, Ududumbara Divisional Secretariat Rs. 46,646, Office of the Regional Director of Health Services, Kandy district Rs. 155,317.66 and the Assistant Secretary of the Public Service Commission, Mrs. B. D. Y. R. Wimalarathna Rs. 15,908.75 donated to the Fund.

The Fund’s balance has now reached Rs. 1,491,752,709.01.

Local, as well as foreign donors, have made their contributions to the Fund. Deposits can be made through cheques, telegraphic transfers, via www.itukama.lk or by dialing #207#.

For further information contact through 0760700700/ 011232088  / 0112354340 or 0112424012.

Newly appointed Navy Commander, Vice Admiral Nishantha Ulugetenna called on President Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the Presidential Secretariat, today (15).

Vice Admiral Ulugetenna received his letter of appointment yesterday as the 24th Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy.

In keeping with the tradition, the new Navy Commander met with the President and presented a memento to mark the  occasion.

• Aims to ensure every student has access to higher education and reduce unskilled labour to 10%

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has declared 2021-2030 the Decade of Skills Development in Sri Lanka. The move is expected to herald a transformational phase of educational reform and skills development for the nation in line with the government’s national policy framework, ‘Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour’.

The Decade of Skills Development builds on the success of Sri Lanka spearheading the adoption of World Youth Skills Day which was established through a proposal presented to the United Nations General Assembly in 2014 by the Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa during his tenure as the President. The action plan for the Decade of Skills Development focuses on cultivating next generation skills in line with global trends and the 2030 Global Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The Decade of Skills Development is expected to transform the general, higher and professional education and vocational education sectors in Sri Lanka in order to reduce the population of unskilled labour to 10%, create global technocrats and position Sri Lanka as the epicenter for human resource development in Asia by creating a digital, future-fit citizenry who will drive the development agenda of the country. Transforming the education sector is also expected to generate revenue for the country by attracting both foreign investments and international students, and increasing foreign remittances brought in by skilled migrant workers.

The national policy framework, ‘Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour’, places significant importance on citizens’ knowledge, skills and capabilities as key drivers to Sri Lanka’s progress. The framework sets out the need to develop and execute an action plan on education that engineers the “creation of an environment that provides our youth and local entrepreneurs with new opportunities, gives everyone new hope and a sense of pride, where people can use their skills, talents and business acumen to be the world leaders in any field of their choice”.

President Rajapaksa previously established a Presidential Task Force on Sri Lanka’s Education Affairs in line with the national policy framework to review the current education system and develop an action plan for transformation. Having reviewed the long standing issues of the education sector presented by the Task Force, the President stressed that the most valuable asset of a country is the future generation and the primary responsibility of a government is to develop human resources so that all citizens can fulfill their potential and be prosperous and contended, leading to a happy family, and a law abiding society in Sri Lanka. In line with the President’s guidance the roadmap for the Decade of Skills Development will also feature multiple re-entry points into education pathways to encourage lifelong learning and ensure that no one is left behind as Sri Lanka moves into a transformational phase of skills development.

The President further stated that public dialogues on the roadmap for the transformational agenda will be initiated in the coming weeks to ensure the initiatives undertaken to address the real needs of students, educators, parents and professionals as well as broader national level institutions and systems.

The transformational agenda for the Decade of Skills Development will be finalized with public input and is expected to galvanize action within and across sectors of education, industry and labour to realize the President’s vision for a generation of future fit, principled Sri Lankans capable of becoming world leaders in any sector of choice, that drive the development of the nation and inspire a sense of pride for all Sri Lankans.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa says that the heads of both government and private entities are accountable for adhering to health guidelines in their organizations in the wake of current spike in COVID 19 cases.

The COVID 19 virus is prone to spread among groups until adequate and satisfactory containment. Kandakadu Rehabilitation Center is an unfortunate example. Therefore the President emphasizes the necessity of continuing easily accessible tests related to clusters of people immediately.

The President made these remarks during a discussion with the Presidential Task Force to curb COVID 19 at the Presidential Secretariat today(July 14).

Although day to day life has returned to normalcy, precautionary measures should not be relaxed as the risk of COVID 19 spread remains high.

President highlighted the importance of carrying out simple tests such as regular body temperature checks in Rehabilitation Centers, prisons, universities, schools and similar places.

“Wearing face masks, washing hands, maintaining social distance are vital under this situation. If you suffer from fever and ailments related to throat, you should refrain from mingling with crowds. Simple practices like these would make a difference in combating COVID 19”, President added.

Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi, Secretary to the President, P.B Jayasundera, Principal Advisor to the President, Lalith Weeratunga, Secretary to the Prime Minister Gamini Senarath, members of the Presidential Task Force and several medical consultants were present.

         Comprehensive plans to control the current spike

         Uninterrupted tests to detect infected persons

         Rehabilitation of drug addicts will be expanded

         All information on current situation open to the public

         President commends all parties helping to curb COVID-19

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa assured that the challenge of protecting the people until the COVID-19 pandemic is eradicated from the world will be met by controlling the risk of spread of the virus from time to time within the country.

The President recalled that with the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, as a responsible government decisive measures were taken to curb the spread of the coronavirus well before many countries in the world. ‘’There were numerous challenges. These challenges were conquered one by one with the implementation of comprehensive strategies. At that time, quarantine centers were something unheard of. The concept was introduced by us. Many people today have forgotten this’’, the President observed.

President Rajapaksa made these remarks during a meeting at the Presidential Secretariat, today (14) with the members of the Presidential Task Force established to combat COVID – 19 in Sri Lanka to review the current situation that has arisen following the emerge of  a new cluster of COVID 19 infected persons at Kandakadu Rehabilitation Centre,

The Presidential Task Force was established on January 26 comprising the health sector, including doctors, the military, intelligence units and the police.

President Rajapaksa recalled the responsible measures taken by the government ahead of many countries since the launch of the mission to evacuate the stranded students in Wuhan, China.

The President said that guidance by the government in decision making and securing assistance of all the stakeholders were instrumental in overcoming the challenge. 16,279 people from 74 countries were brought back to the Motherland and following the completion of the quarantine process they were sent back to their homes. The President also recalled the service rendered by maintaining 70 quarantine centers.

“Residents of the locality protested when quarantine centers were being established. Protests were staged when the arrivals from countries such as Italy and South Korea were accompanied to the quarantine centers. The government will ensure the protection of its citizens in the future as well. Obstacles will not compromise the responsibilities of the government,” President emphasized.

Those who were in close contacts with the identified COVID 19 infected at Kandakadu Rehabilitation Center had been directed to the quarantine process. In addition, others who were in contact with the infected indirectly have been diverted to self-isolation. President stated that as the government was successful in overcoming the crisis before, plans have been set in motion to address the impending issues as well.

President Rajapaksa instructed officials to continue the PCR tests in order to minimize the spread of the virus.

The President advised authorities to increase the number of PCR tests in areas such as Rajanganaya, where new cases were identified recently. He also instructed them to update the general public about the pandemic regularly along with the plans devised by the government to control it.

In parallel to the discussions to curb the COVID 19 pandemic, the need for expanding the rehabilitation programmes for drug addicts were also reviewed in depth.

President Rajapaksa emphasized that he holds everyone who stands vigilant and perseveres tirelessly both day and night to curb the COVID 19 pandemic, in high esteem.

Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi, Secretary to the President, P.B Jayasundera, Principal Advisor to the President, Lalith Weeratunga, Secretary to the Prime Minister Gamini Senarath, members of the Presidential Task Force and several medical consultants were present.

Mr. President,

In an era where humanity is threatened with inter-state conflicts, intra-state frictions, asymmetrical threats posed by non-state actors, natural disasters, health related issues and a variety of other challenges, Sri Lanka appreciates Germany’s efforts to initiate discussion on the timely subject of  “Peace Operations and Human Rights”. My delegation wishes Germany every success as President of the Security Council for the month of July and is confident that it will be a productive tenure.

Sri Lanka takes this opportunity to honor the thousands of men and women who for decades helped countries navigate the difficult path from conflict to peace by providing security and peacebuilding support under the Blue Helmet. Sri Lanka is proud to have a long association with United Nations Peacekeeping Operations, having served as a member of the 1956 Advisory Committee that led to the establishment of the first “classical” peacekeeping mission – UNEF 1, deployed  during the Suez crisis and later deployed  UN Peacekeepers to the UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC) in 1960.

With consistent effort, a wealth of experience and expertise gathered across diverse scenarios, the United Nations Peace Operations (UNPO) have become a vital- credible, dependable and versatile global instrument to ensure  human security in conflict situations. The significance of the current Peace Operations are such that, considering the magnitudes of violence and their frequency of manifestation, it would be hard to visualize the destiny of human lives in some of the conflict zones in the absence of assistance by the United Nations.

Human Rights remain an important element for UNPO. Several PKOs such as MONUSCO, MINUSCA, MINUSMA, UNAMID, UNMISS have integrated human rights components, as well as Special Political Missions such as UNAMI, UNSMIL, UNSOM, UNAMA and BINUH, to identify a few. This is crucial across a wide spectrum of missions and strengthens the Missions’ credibility.

Sri Lanka remains fully committed to UN Peacekeeping and upholding human rights, and in this context has taken a number of measures to ensure that all Sri Lankan Peacekeepers are suitably trained and fully equipped with theoretical knowledge and practical application of all necessary functions of peacekeeping, including the promotion and protection of  human rights.  Towards this end, a comprehensive package of education and training on relevant subjects are included in the pre-deployment training courses and continuity is maintained during the deployment by way of in-mission training, conducted in consultation with UN authorities. In addition, human rights has been included as part of the training of security forces and police in Sri Lanka. At the premier degree awarding tertiary institution established for military personnel, the Kotalawala Defence University, where many military cadets pursue degree programmes, human rights is taught as an important component of the academic programme. The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka and the ICRC also conduct a number of training programmes for the Military and the Police on human rights and international humanitarian law.

Mr. President,

It is observed that Peace Operations are becoming progressively complex in nature, with diverse socio-political challenges with increased impact on civilians as a result of direct and indirect actions of parties to conflicts. Sri Lanka has endorsed the Kigali Principles on the Protection of Civilians.

Violations of human rights in most conflict affected communities, disproportionately affect  women and children. In situations of heightened violence and insecurity, as one of the most vulnerable segments of the population, they may experience such violations from within the family itself, in addition to existing discrimination in society. As such, it is vital to be sensitive to issues of gender in looking at human rights.

In a number of missions, women protection advisers are responsible for monitoring, analyzing and reporting on conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV). Whilst assuring Sri Lanka’s continuous commitment to enhance the participation of women in Peacekeeping operations, it is emphasized that focusing on education and capacity building of women should be considered a priority task to achieve meaningful gender parity as a long-term solution to this issue.

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the human rights situation, particularly in territories affected by conflict. Travel related restrictions and limitations enforced on human interactions have generated negative effects across the spectrum, ranging from difficulties in delivering humanitarian assistance to the provision of protection for vulnerable communities. Diversion of resources from funds allocated for UN field missions for humanitarian assistance to the pandemic mitigation effort would weaken capacities of peacekeeping missions in protecting civilians.

It is pertinent to mention that credibility of institutions that promote the adherence to and protection of  human rights can be significantly undermined when they are  unduly politicized. There have been instances where unproven allegations of human rights violations were used as instruments to unduly pressurize and manipulate contributions to peacekeeping by governments for undue political gains. Sri Lanka firmly believes that, the United Nations as the largest global body that is committed to ensure the rights of every human being, should always remain impartial whilst fully respecting the principle of sovereign equality in its all interactions with member states.

Mr. President,

The ever-changing dynamics of present armed conflicts and their rapid evolution makes the protection of human rights of vulnerable communities as a recurring task which is becoming increasingly challenging. In this context, the UN peacekeeping operations should remain a collective endeavor in ensuring the protection of vulnerable communities, and it is essential that there is engagement and interaction with various stakeholders, including civil society and the wider population.  This is also vital to build trust with local communities, where UN Peacekeeping Missions operate. Protecting civilians and upholding human rights are vital for the success of a UNPKO and shapes how a population will remember the Peacekeepers and reflects the manner in which the United Nations will be evaluated.

Having engaged in a humanitarian struggle with a terrorist organization that used human shields, suicide bombers and child soldiers, Sri Lanka’s armed forces and Police have been sharing expertise in handling difficult and complex terrains of the humanitarian engagement field in difficult areas of the world. Whilst acknowledging and commending the effort by the UN Secretariat and the Department of Peace Operations on their dedicated effort in promoting the human rights of communities undergoing hardships in conflict affected territories, Sri Lanka reiterates its full commitment to this noble cause, to protect and promote human rights and the protection of civilians.

The Cabinet of Ministers has taken another two weeks to submit their opinions on the expert committee report on the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) agreement, Co-cabinet Spokesman Higher Education, Technology and Innovation and Media Minister Dr. Bandula Gunawardena said.

“Since it is a comprehensive report, the Ministers wanted more time to go through it and submit a report,” the Minister said.

He further said that nobody should worry about this matter since the government under President Gotabaya Rajapaksa will never sign any agreement harmful to the country.

The Minister made this observation responding to a question by a journalist at the Cabinet media briefing held yesterday at the Government Information Department.

The final report of the committee headed by Prof. Lalithasiri Gunaruwan appointed to review the Millennium Challenge Corporation agreement presented its final report to Cabinet last week and all the Cabinet Ministers had been instructed to submit their opinion on the recommendations in the Report at the next Cabinet meeting.

Following corporate, individual donations and direct deposits, ‘ITUKAMA’ COVID-19 Healthcare and Social Security Fund balance has now surpassed Rs. 1450 million.

Members of the Wennappuwa Pradeshiya Sabha including its Chairman have donated Rs. 166,000 to the Fund. In addition, Ms. H. Priyanthi R. Peiris donated a sum of Rs. 5,000, Managing Director of the ‘A’ Group Construction & Consults Company, Engineer P.Thyaparan Rs. 200,000,   the President of the Vegetables, Fruit and Grain Wholesalers Owneres’ Welfare Association, Sunil Senevirathne Rs. 200,000, H.K.Sirisena Rs.50, 000, Ms. P.B. Sumanawathie Rs.6, 500, W. Manoj Lalith Fernando Rs.64, 000 and M.A. Peter Wilfred Rs.5,000 donated to the Fund. Cheques relating to these donations were handed over to the President Gotabaya Rajapaksa during his visits to the Anuradhapura and Puttalam districts.

Girl child, D.M. Udula Vishwani has donated Rs.5,000, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka Rs. 263,628.56, Weettasinghe Pharmaceutical Distributors (Pvt) Ltd Rs. 50,000, Udunuwara Divisional Secretariat Development Officers’ Welfare Society Rs. 189,625.34 and the Director General at the National Secretariat for Non-governmental Organizations, Raja Goonaratne has donated Rs. 88,000 to the Fund.

The Fund’s balance has now reached Rs. 1,450,326,673.05.

Local, as well as foreign donors, have made their contributions to the Fund. Deposits can be made through cheques, telegraphic transfers, via www.itukama.lk or by dialling #207#.

For further information contact through 0760700700/ 0112320880/ 0112354340 or 0112424012.