'Health status of Lankans on par with developed nations'

Nadira GUNATILLEKE

President Mahinda Rajapaksa in his election manifesto `Mahinda Chinthanaya' made a commitment to the people of Sri Lanka to ensure the successful progression of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Chairman of the Executive Board of the WHO and Healthcare and Nutrition Minister of Sri Lanka Nimal Siripala De Silva said.

He was addressing the United Nations General Assembly Special Sessions on Millennium Development Goals held in New York today (25th). Minister De Silva had said that the infant mortality rate has been brought down from 140 per 1000 live births in 1945 to a very low 11.2 per 1000 live births in 2005.

The maternal mortality rate has brought down from a very high 155 per 10,000 live births in 1946 to 1.4 per 10,000 live births at present.

Minister De Silva said that even for people living in the most remote areas the life expectancy rate has increased from an average of 42 years in 1945 to an average of 73 years in 2006. Today, Sri Lanka stands far ahead of all the regional countries and on par with the developed countries with regard to the health status of its people.

He had stressed that today any individual living in Sri Lanka has access to primary health care within a 5 km radius and community health services have been improved to a level where a Public Health Midwife looks after a population of 3000 today.

Over 95 per cent of pregnant mothers are under the direct care of them. Hospital deliveries have increased up to 97 per cent.

During the past two years the Ministry has been able to fill all the existing vacancies of community health workers such as Public Health Midwives and Public Health Inspectors in the conflict areas of the North and East. Currently there are 15,000 nurses and 2500 para-medical grades undergoing training. Immunisation coverage has increased to almost 100 per cent in Sri Lanka.

The incidence of HIV/AIDS is less than 0.05 per cent and this is one of the lowest in the region due to concerted efforts by the Government, the Minister has said.

All these achievements have been made possible by the correct policies adopted by the Sri Lankan Government in the past. The policy of providing free education has helped to improve female literacy making access to information more effectively.

Free education and free health care provided to all the people have been considered by successive Governments as investments to produce a healthy literate workforce to support its economy.

The present Government has endorsed its commitment to this cause by increasing the health budget three fold over the last several years, the Minister added.