Health Minister Nalinda Jayatissa will lead Sri Lanka's delegation to the 79th WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia in Timor-Leste from September 7–10, where he will continue as committee chairperson and discuss regional health priorities including workforce strengthening and universal coverage.
Health and Mass Media Minister Nalinda Jayatissa is heading Sri Lanka's delegation to the 79th session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia, held in Dili, Timor-Leste from September 7 to 10. The meeting brings together health ministers and senior officials from ten member states of the South-East Asia Region, alongside WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and other international delegates. Jayatissa will continue as chairperson of the Regional Committee until a successor is elected at the opening of the session; he was elected to the position at the committee's 78th session in Colombo in 2025.
The 2026 meeting prioritises strengthening the health workforce and ensuring equitable access to specialised care. Agenda items include workforce development, universal health coverage, digital health applications, artificial intelligence in healthcare, resilience of health facilities, disease elimination programmes and tuberculosis control efforts. Delegates are expected to consider adoption of the Dili Declaration on equitable access to specialised care. Sri Lanka will present its experience with free healthcare provision and propose measures for strengthening regional health systems and cooperation.
The Sri Lankan delegation comprises Secretary to the Ministry of Health Anil Jasinghe, Deputy Director-General of Health Services (Planning) S. Sridharan, Deputy Director-General of Health Services (Public Health Services) S. M. Arnold, Senior Professor Vajira H. W. Dissanayake and Health Ministry Director (Planning) Janaki Vidanapathirana. On the sidelines of the meeting, Minister Jayatissa is scheduled to hold bilateral discussions with health counterparts from India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Indonesia and Qatar, as well as with WHO Director-General Tedros. According to one source, he is also scheduled to meet Belgium's newly appointed Ambassador to Timor-Leste.