Sri Lanka Elected Chair of BIMSTEC Health Ministers’ Summit

COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka has been entrusted with a key leadership role in regional health cooperation after Health and Mass Media Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa was elected Chair of the first BIMSTEC Health Ministers’ Meeting currently being held in Colombo.

The appointment came at the opening session of the summit, which got underway on Wednesday (11) morning, bringing together health ministers and senior representatives from the seven BIMSTEC member states: Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Myanmar and Thailand.

Dr. Jayatissa’s election places Sri Lanka at the centre of efforts to strengthen health sector cooperation across the Bay of Bengal region at a time when countries are increasingly focusing on collective responses to public health threats, disease outbreaks and health emergencies.

The summit is expected to focus on a range of shared priorities, including regional public health security, infectious disease control, preparedness for health emergencies, and greater technical and knowledge exchange among member states.

With the chairmanship now vested in Sri Lanka, the country will play a leading role in guiding policy dialogue and fostering collective action on health-related challenges facing the BIMSTEC region.

The latest appointment further strengthens Sri Lanka’s growing profile in regional and international health diplomacy.

Dr. Jayatissa was previously elected Chair of the World Health Organization’s South-East Asia Regional Committee during its 78th session held in Colombo. He was also selected as Vice Chair of the Fifth Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference organised under the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) in Bangkok.