To address the growing need for specialized care and education, the government has prepared a five-year national program aimed at improving health, education, and service facilities for children with autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders across all 25 districts. The initiative will be implemented under the Early Childhood Development Program for Sri Lanka.
As an initial step, the 2025 Budget has allocated Rs. 200 million for the establishment of a state-of-the-art treatment center for children with autism and related disorders at the Lady Ridgeway Children’s Hospital in Colombo, designed to meet international standards.
In addition, a project proposal has been submitted to the Department of National Planning to expand interventions to all districts. The proposed program includes three main components:
Establishing child development and intervention centers at district level.
Setting up community children’s centers at provincial level.
Implementing capacity-building programs to enhance professional expertise and local care systems.
The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the proposal presented by the Minister of Health and Mass Media to carry out these initiatives based on the Department of National Planning’s recommendations. The project will be executed under the medium-term budget framework 2025–2027, marking a significant step toward improving early detection, intervention, and inclusive development for children with special needs across Sri Lanka.
