SL’S response to COVID-19 swift, decisive and coordinated: WHO case study

Says SL has successfully controlled COVID-19

Sri Lanka’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic has been swift, decisive and coordinated using whole-of-society approach under the strong leadership of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa with technical guidance from the Health Ministry and the World Health Organization (WHO), a monthly selection of case studies released by the WHO said.

The monthly selection of case studies titled ‘COVID-19: WHO’S Action in Countries | August 2020’ featured several countries including Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Lebanon, Malaysia, Morocco, Myanmar and Russia.the report which was released on September 9 said Sri Lanka has ‘a Robust Health System Responding Effectively to COVID-19 Pandemic.’ It said the Health Ministry has received strong political support from the President of Sri Lanka since the emergence of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China. “Sri Lanka has successfully controlled the COVID-19 epidemic in the country through its past investments to build a robust and resilient health system. On January 27, the first case of COVID-19 was detected in Sri Lanka following which the President immediately took the lead of the national COVID-19 response. Using WHO guidelines as a reference, the Health Ministry developed the Sri Lanka Preparedness and Response Plan for COVID-19,” it said.

It said adherence to public health and social measures was tested in the recently concluded general election.

“The election was successfully conducted island-wide without any amplifying event. It is one of Sri Lanka’s biggest success stories and illustrates just how far the country has come in controlling this deadly virus,” it said.