Maldives and Sri Lanka Convene the First Joint Working Group Meeting on Health Cooperation New

The Ministry of Health, Family and Welfare of the Republic of Maldives and the Ministry of Health and Mass Media of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka successfully convened the First Joint Working Group (JWG) Meeting under the Memorandum of Understanding on Health Cooperation on 28 October 2026 via a virtual platform. The Joint Working Group was established to facilitate the implementation of the MoU, which was signed on 7 June 2023 in Colombo during the official visit of former President to Sri Lanka.

The meeting reaffirmed the longstanding friendship and strong partnership between the Maldives and Sri Lanka and underscored the shared commitment of both Governments to further strengthen bilateral cooperation in the health sector.

During the meeting, both sides held constructive discussions on priority areas of cooperation under the Memorandum of Understanding. Discussions focused on human resource development, recruitment of healthcare professionals, capacity building and training, regulatory cooperation, procurement and donation of medicines and medical products, blood transfusion services, mental health, drug rehabilitation services, and specialized healthcare services. The meeting also provided an opportunity to identify practical areas for future collaboration and strengthen institutional linkages between the two countries.

The Maldivian delegation expressed its appreciation for the continued support extended by Sri Lanka to the Maldives’ health sector, particularly through the contribution of Sri Lankan healthcare professionals serving across the country. Both sides also explored opportunities to enhance collaboration through knowledge exchange, technical cooperation, and professional development programmes.

At the conclusion of the meeting, both delegations welcomed the productive discussions and reaffirmed their commitment to advancing the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding through continued engagement and close coordination under the Joint Working Group mechanism.

The Ministry of Health, Family and Welfare extends its sincere appreciation to the Ministry of Health and Mass Media of Sri Lanka and all participants for their valuable contributions and looks forward to further strengthening health cooperation between the two countries for the mutual benefit of their peoples.