The President emphasised the urgent need to safeguard and rehabilitate the Central Highlands, considered the heart of the country following the significant damage caused by landslides triggered by the recent “Cyclone Dithwah”. Accordingly, a decision has been taken to establish a dedicated authority to address environmental issues in the upper watershed areas and to ensure the protection of the Central Highlands. The progress of the process, including the required legal provisions, was reviewed in detail and proposals and views were also presented.
Taking into account all proposals and observations the President instructed officials to expedite the necessary follow-up action.
The new authority will be entrusted with the environmental restoration and management of Sri Lanka’s upper watershed areas. It will also facilitate institutional coordination to achieve key objectives, including national water security and food security, disaster risk reduction, economic and energy efficiency, climate change adaptation and mitigation, as well as natural capital accounting.
The meeting was attended by Secretary to the President Dr Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, Secretary to the Ministry of Defence Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha (Rtd), Secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government S. Aloka Bandara, Senior Additional Secretary to the President and Secretary to the Ministry of Energy G.M.R.D. Aponsu, Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation D.P. Wickramasinghe, Secretary to the Ministry of Plantation and Community Infrastructure Gunadasa Samarasinghe; along with other ministry secretaries, heads of relevant institutions, public officials, environmentalists, representatives of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB), as well as local and international experts in the field.
