2026-02-10
News Categories : Committee News
Extensive discussions were held at the Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus regarding the expedited implementation of the functions of the National Commission on Women. The discussions took place when the caucus met on 05.02.2026 at the Parliamentary Complex, under the chairpersonship of Hon. Minister of Women and Child Affairs Saroja Savithri Paulraj.
During the meeting, attention was drawn to a letter dated 2nd February 2026 submitted to the caucus by Senior Lecturer Ms. Janaha Selvaras, a member of the National Commission on Women, requesting immediate action to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of the Chairperson of the Commission and to ensure the Commission becomes operational without delay. Following extensive discussion, it was decided that representatives of the Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus, the National Commission on Women, and relevant institutions would meet with the Secretary to the President at the earliest opportunity to discuss the matter further.
Additionally, the caucus discussed the vacancy of a commissioner position at the National Commission on Women, in accordance with the provisions of the Women’s Empowerment Act, No. 37 of 2024, as highlighted in a letter dated 20th January 2026 addressed to the caucus by Dr. Ramani Jayasundara, who was serving as the Chairperson of the Commission at the time.
The caucus also discussed plans to commemorate International Women’s Day, as well as the formulation of an action plan for the year 2026. Accordingly, it was decided to hold a Parliamentary Adjournment Bebate in conjunction with International Women’s Day, to conduct awareness programmes for women members of local government institutions aimed at empowering grassroots-level women in politics, and to engage in discussions with women’s forums at the local government level.
Furthermore, the caucus decided to hold discussions with various professional organizations with strong female representation on the prevention of violence against women. Agreement was also reached to hold discussions on the issues faced by women affected by microfinance-related debt.
Several members of the Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus were present at the meeting.
2026-06-19
The Ministerial Consultative Committee on Environment focused its attention on the issue of water pollution in the Kelani River when it met in Parliament recently (10th June) under the chairmanship of the Hon. Minister of Environment, Dr. Dammika Patabendi.During the meeting, the Committee was briefed on the progress of discussions being held with companies that have expressed willingness to invest in a project aimed at cleaning the waters of the Kelani River.The Committee also discussed a number of proposals and other issues raised by Hon. Members of Parliament.The meeting was attended by Hon. Members of Parliament and officials.
2026-06-18
A meeting of the Women Parliamentarians Caucus was held in Parliament recently to discuss the importance of incorporating Gender-Responsive Budgeting into Sri Lanka’s national budget formulation process and to examine the challenges associated with its implementation.The meeting was chaired by the Chairperson of the Caucus and Hon. Minister of Women and Child Affairs, Saroja Savithri Paulraj. Hon. Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya also participated in the discussion.A key concern raised during the discussion was the lack of adequate data and indicators to accurately assess and measure women’s economic contributions within the budgetary process. Drawing on examples of approaches adopted in India and other countries, members of the Caucus underscored the need to identify and address existing systemic and technical gaps in Sri Lanka’s budgeting framework.The Caucus also emphasized the importance of disaggregating data by gender in project reporting and strengthening digital data management systems to support such efforts. It was further noted that identifying relevant gender-related considerations at the initial stages of project design and implementation at the ministerial level would facilitate more effective project analysis, monitoring, and evaluation of outcomes.The need to move away from existing traditional and time-consuming methods towards formal online systems and data-driven analytical tools was also emphasized.The current progress and challenges in integrating Gender-Responsive Budgeting into Sri Lanka’s public financial policy were discussed in detail during the meeting.It was also emphasized that such budgeting should not be limited to nominal percentages in documents, but that the need to establish a formal framework and data system to ensure it has a real and practical impact was also highlighted.The Hon.Deputy Chairperson of Committees Hemalee Weerasekera, Hon. Deputy Minister Dr. Kaushalya Ariyarathne, Co-Vice Chairpersons of the Caucus, Hon. Members of Parliament Chamindrani Kiriella, Attorney at Law and Samanmalee Gunasinghe, Hon. Members of Parliament Thushari Jayasinghe, Attorney at Law, Krishnan Kaleichelvi, Sagarika Athauda ,Attorney at Law, Nilanthi Kottahachchi, Attorney at Law, Ambika Samivel and Lakmali Hemachandra, Attorney at Law, along with a group of officials from the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, also participated in the event.
2026-06-17
The Ministerial Consultative Committee on Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government met recently (Jun. 12) at Parliament under the chairmanship of the Hon. Minister of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government, Prof. A.H.M.H. Abayarathna.During the meeting, Members of Parliament discussed a range of issues and proposals relating to their respective electorates, as well as several other matters of public importance.Hon. Members of Parliament and officials were present at the meeting.
2026-06-17
The Ministerial Consultative Committee on Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs met recently (Jun. 09) at Parliament under the chairmanship of the Hon. Minister of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs, Dr. Hiniduma Sunil Senevi.During the meeting, Members of Parliament discussed a number of proposals and issues, including reviewing the progress of discussions initiated with the Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education and the Department of Examinations regarding the formulation of regulations to prevent the conduct of private tuition classes on Sunday mornings, thereby facilitating the holding of Dhamma School classes on Sundays.The meeting was attended by Hon. Deputy Ministers, Hon. Members of Parliament and officials.
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
