2024-09-09
News Categories : Committee News
The report of the Select Committee of Parliament to look into whether the child malnutrition issue in Sri Lanka is aggravating and to identify short term, medium term, and long-term measures to be taken in that regard, as well as to oversee the speedy implementation of the identified measures was presented to Parliament by Member of Parliament, Hon. Rohini Kumari Wijerathna on behalf of the Select Committee Chair Hon. Vadivel Suresh recently (04).
The Report presents that child undernutrition can be presented in four forms such as stunting (low length/height for age), wasting (low weight for length/ height or low BMI for age), underweight (low weight for age) and, micro nutrient deficiencies/ insufficiencies - a lack/ inadequacy of important vitamins and minerals.
The Report further states that babies born with a birth weight of 2500 grams or less are considered to be low birth weight and according to the National Nutrition and Micronutrient Survey conducted in 2022, the prevalence of low birth weight in a nationally representative sample was 15.9%. The June 2023 Nutrition Month report identified an increase in underweight and stunting among infants and children up to two years of age compared to 2022. The most alarmingly high underweight rate of 24.6% was recorded in Nuwara Eliya district, where one in every four children was identified as moderately or severely underweight, the report said.
In June 2023, the proportion of children affected by poverty in Sri Lanka is 10%, according to this report. 1.2% of all children under the age of 5 are affected by severe acute malnutrition and numerically nearly 16,000 children suffer from such acute malnutrition.
The Nutrition Month 2023 report revealed a 10.3% increase in stunting among children under the age of five, an increase of 9.2% from the previous year. The report has revealed that the causes of chronic malnutrition, which are short or short in height compared to children of the same age, occur over time. Meanwhile, according to the survey conducted in 2022, a nationally representative sample of children aged 5-18 years found that shortness, overweight and obesity increase with age.
The report has shown that lack of food security at the household level has also contributed to malnutrition. Due to the economic crisis in the year 2022, 98% of the entire population has been affected by the increase in food prices, and as a result, 74% of the households could not afford to buy food or daily essentials in the last six months of that year, according to the report. The number of food insecure households increased to 24% in the third quarter of 2023 compared to 17% in March 2023. A third of all families have reduced the frequency of cooking or limited their consumption and a quarter live on food from neighbors.
The report provides conclusions and recommendations for improving child nutrition. It emphasized the importance of immediate attention to children before they become chronically malnourished. The report also emphasized the need for adequately skilled field health staff to provide quality Maternal and Child Nutrition (MCN) services for Maternal and Child Health (MCH) programs. The report also emphasized that vitamin A supplementation should be considered again before this becomes a problem again, as vitamin A supplementation has been discontinued for school children. The need for urgent action to improve the food security status of families with children under the age of five has also been highlighted.
The report also recommends using existing health management information systems to identify focal areas of malnutrition in children and to map risk to address malnutrition in order to identify the most vulnerable families and causal factors.
A number of short, medium and long-term recommendations have been presented in this report, including uninterrupted supply of nutritional supplements to pregnant mothers and malnourished children, control of prices of those ingredients to ensure affordable availability of ingredients for a healthy and low-cost diet, the implementation and monitoring of pre-school feeding program, school feeding program and school canteen guidelines to provide quality food.
2026-02-16
The Microfinance and Credit Regulatory Authority Bill was considered and approved by the Committee on Public Finance.This took place at a meeting of the Committee held in Parliament on 10.02.2026 under the Chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament Dr. Harsha de Silva, with the participation of Hon. Deputy Ministers Chathuranga Abeysinghe, (Dr.) Kaushalya Ariyaratne, and Nishantha Jayaweera, as well as Hon. Members of Parliament Attorney-at-Law Rauff Hakeem and Nimal Palihena.The Bill has been drafted with the objectives of establishing the Sri Lanka Microfinance and Credit Regulatory Authority, regulating the money lending business and microfinance business, protecting customers engaged in such businesses, repealing the Microfinance Act, No. 6 of 2016 and providing for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.The Chair of the Committee stated that the original draft of this Bill, which had been presented in 2024, was challenged before the Supreme Court, and that the constitutional inconsistencies identified by the Court appear to have been addressed in this new draft. The Committee expressed its appreciation for the Bill, which had been prepared after obtaining the views of all stakeholders.Officials stated that the Authority to be established under this Bill will issue licenses to and regulate persons engaged in money lending and microfinance businesses, and that the Authority will be governed by a Board of Directors. It was further noted that no person may conduct a money lending business without a license issued by the Authority.The Committee inquired whether online lending activities would also fall under the purview of the Authority. Officials clarified that online lending may also be carried out only by licensed entities. They further emphasized that customer protection is a primary objective of the Bill.Discussions were also held regarding whether the Bill adequately covers the social empowerment role of community-based financial institutions, including through the introduction of relaxed regulatory fees or simplified compliance requirements. Practical operational issues and consumer protection were also identified as areas requiring further attention.Officials noted that certain lenders, such as e-commerce operators, would not fall within the scope of this Act.Taking into account the prevailing public mistrust and uncertainty surrounding legislative reforms, the Committee recommended that the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development implement effective communication programs to raise awareness among the public and all stakeholders. As an initial step, the Committee suggested publishing a document containing Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).As the Authority will be vested with statutory powers to determine maximum interest rates in both the lending and deposit sectors, the Committee advised officials to exercise such powers in a manner that preserves the nature of the various financial instruments used by microfinance institutions for savings and lending activities.The delegation of powers to Divisional Secretariat offices was also discussed at length. Officials stated that small-scale lenders would not be required to travel to Colombo to engage with the Authority, and that limited powers relating to connected functions (such as processing applications and other routine matters) would be delegated to the Divisional Secretariat level. The Committee emphasized the need for a robust information technology system to ensure the effective and efficient implementation of this process.Furthermore, at the same meeting, the Committee also considered and approved the Resolution published in Extraordinary Gazette No. 2464/15 under the Customs Ordinance (Chapter 235), as well as three Orders issued under the Special Commodity Levy Act.
2026-02-13
Select Committee of Parliament to look into and Report to Parliament on the release of 323 Containers from the Port of Colombo without undergoing mandatory physical inspection and submit its proposals and recommendations in that regard, met for the third consecutive day on 11.02.2026 in Parliament. The meeting was chaired by the Hon. Minister of Justice and National Integration, Attorney-at-Law Harshana Nanayakkara.A group of officials from Sri Lanka Customs, including Director General of Customs Mr. Seewali Arukgoda, were summoned before the Committee, and evidence relating to the incident was recorded.Prior to the commencement of evidence, the Chair informed the Committee that the Hon. Minister of Ports and Civil Aviation, Mr. Anura Karunatilaka, had tendered his resignation from the membership of the Committee, and that another member would be appointed in due course to fill the vacancy.The meeting was attended by Committee members: Hon. Deputy Minister of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development Chathuranga Abeysinghe, Hon. Deputy Minister of Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs, Attorney-at-Law Sunil Watagala, Hon. Deputy Minister of Energy Arkam Ilyas and Hon. Members of Parliament Attorney-at-Law Dayasiri Jayasekara, Ajith P. Perera, D. V. Chanaka, Mujibur Rahuman, Dr. Najith Indika and Attorney-at-Law Lakmali Hemachandra.
2026-02-13
Officials from the Ministry of Digital Economy stated that there are plans to provide every person in the country with High-Speed Broadband connectivity by the year 2029.These remarks were made during a meeting of the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Science, Technology and Digital Transformation, held in Parliament on 06.02.2026 under the chairmanship of Member of Parliament (Dr). Janaka Senarathne, to discuss the action plan related to the allocation of 2026 budget provisions for the Ministry of Digital Economy and the Ministry of Science and Technology.At this meeting, (Dr.) Hans Wijayasuriya, Senior Advisor to the President, made a detailed presentation before the Committee regarding the programme planned to provide High-Speed Broadband connectivity to every person in the country. He pointed out that steps are being taken this year to install 100 new telecommunication towers. He further stated that between 600 to 1000 telecommunication towers would be required to fully meet the national requirement, and that this would be carried out in stages.He also emphasized that although approximately 98% internet coverage currently exists in the country, it does not meet the requirements for High-Speed Broadband coverage. Therefore, he stated that the existing capacity must be increased by around 25% in order to provide High-Speed Broadband facilities to every child.Furthermore, he noted that a commercial model will be prepared in relation to telecommunication towers, and opportunities will be given to the private sector to submit bids for this purpose.The Committee also focused attention on the need to improve digital literacy in areas outside Colombo, and it was proposed that programmes be organized through District Secretariat offices for this purpose.In addition, discussions were held regarding the action plan for allocating 2026 budget provisions for the Ministry of Science and Technology, and several annual reports and performance reports of institutions were approved.The meeting was attended by Hon. Deputy Minister Chathuranga Abeysinghe, and Members of Parliament Chandima Hettiarachchi, Lasith Bhashana Gamage, Chathura Galappaththi, Aboobucker Athambawa and Ruwan Wijeweera.
2026-02-13
The Committee on High Posts of parliament has approved the nominations of four Heads of Mission. The approval was granted when the Committee met in Parliament recently (Feb. 06) under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya.Accordingly, the Committee approved the nominations of Mr. Horana Mahawatte Gedara Saman Kumar Chandrasiri as the Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the State of Israel, Mr. Warnakulasuriya Peter Rohan Dhammika Fernando as the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to the Republic of Kenya, Anura Withanage as the Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the Lebanese Republic, and Mohamed Farook Mohamed Fawzer as the Representative of Sri Lanka to the State of Palestine.
Handbook of Parliament
The System of Elections in Sri Lanka
How Parliament Works
Business of Parliament
Copyright © The Parliament of Sri Lanka.
All Rights Reserved.
Design & Developed by TekGeeks
