News
Japan donates large shipment of canned fish to Lanka
Kitamura Toshihiro, Charge d’Affaires ad interim of Japan to Sri Lanka and Andrea Berardo, WFP Deputy Country Director of Sri Lanka, sign the Exchange of Notes for the donation of canned fish, in the presence of N.H.M. Chitrananda, Secretary of the Ministry of Education, L.M.W. Darmasena, Additional Secretary, School Activities of the Ministry of Education and Renuka Peiris, Director, Health and Nutrition of the Ministry of Education.
The Government of Japan has donated a large shipment of canned fish, weighing 388 MT and worth JPY 300 million (LKR 519 million), to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the Government of Sri Lanka, to meet the protein needs of school children covered by the national school meal programme.
The donation was formalised at a ceremony held at the Japanese Ambassador’s residence in Colombo, at which the Exchange of Notes were signed by Kitamura Toshihiro, Charge d’Affaires ad interim of Japan to Sri Lanka and Andrea Berardo, WFP Deputy Country Director of Sri Lanka. The event was presided over by N.H.M. Chitrananda, Secretary of the Ministry of Education, L.M.W. Darmasena, Additional Secretary, School Activities of the Ministry of Education and Renuka Peiris, Director, Health and Nutrition of the Ministry of Education.
“The Governments of Sri Lanka and Japan have had a strong bond with a mutually supportive relationship between the people of our countries for many years,” says Kitamura Toshihiro, Charge d’Affaires ad interim of Japan to Sri Lanka.
“The Government of Sri Lanka and its people demonstrated their solidarity to Japan in the immediate aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami in March 2011, through a cash donation of US$ 1 million and 3 million tea bags. The canned fish provided by Japan is sourced from the areas supported by Sri Lanka, as an extension of the continuous supply provided by Japan, reflecting our appreciation of our Sri Lankan friends for lending a hand to Japan in times of need. We will continue to support Sri Lanka, in the spirit of unity and solidarity in our joint battle against the effects of Covid-19”.
Through this agreement, the Government of Japan commits to making available to the Government of Sri Lanka – through WFP – 388 MT of canned fish, enough for the preparation of 19 million nutritious meals, rich in protein, for 270,000 school children. This latest contribution ensures that canned fish will continue to be offered to school children, for the period 2021 – 2022, in addition to the previous consignment of canned fish supplied by the Government of Japan which will last up to mid next year.
“Nutritious meals are the foundation to good health, especially for children,” says Andrea Berardo, WFP Deputy Country Director in Sri Lanka. “This generous contribution from Japan comes at a crucial time when so many Sri Lankan families are hard hit by COVID-19 with reduced incomes and job loss. Fish is a great source of protein and by including it in school meals, we can be certain that children are getting the right nutrients they need to grow and develop.”
Lack of adequate protein intake could result in several health issues amongst children, including slow growth, poor concentration and decreased immunity. In Sri Lanka, nutrition surveys have indicated that 40% of primary-level school children were too thin before Covid-19. Consumption of protein-rich foods such as fish is vital to help children meet their dietary requirements.
“The Government of Sri Lanka has been conducting the National School Meal Programme for several decades,” said the Secretary of the Ministry of Education, N.H.M. Chitrananda. “The programme was developed with the objective of ensuring that children are healthy and can optimally benefit from educational opportunities provided to them. We are thankful to the Government of Japan and WFP for providing canned fish to supplement the school meal programme and for supporting us in enhancing the nutritional status of school children.”
The National School Meal Programme which WFP has supported since 2003 was disrupted by Covid-19-induced school closures in March 2020. The Government of Japan, through WFP, has been supporting the programme since 2011, with approximately 1,500 MT of canned fish worth more than JPY 1 billion, to supplement school meals twice a week, adding diversity, nutrition and taste. WFP, together with the Government of Japan, will continue to support the Government of Sri Lanka in its efforts to scale up and enhance the National School Meal Programme.
By Shamindra Ferdinando
Iran has sought the Indian intervention, at the highest level, to provide lifesaving support to the crews of empty Iranian vessels stranded just outside Sri Lanka’s 12-nautical mile territorial waters off Galle.
Sources familiar with the issue said that Iran had brought the developing situation to the attention of New Delhi as the crews of almost 20 vessels, included Indian nationals. Sources stressed that the group of vessels that unloaded crude oil a couple of months back were now stranded within Sri Lanka’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
The US Navy torpedoed an unarmed Iran frigate, returning from India, on 04 March, 2026, about 19 nautical miles off the Galle coast. The unprovoked attack killed nearly 100 Iranians.
The Iranian Embassy in Colombo has inquired from the Indian High Commission of their response to the situation, sources said. The US has issued a global warning against providing food, water, medicine and other services to the Iranian vessels. The outcome of Iran-India talks on the issue at hand was not known, though sources asserted India may not throw its weight behind Iranian efforts to address the issue.
Responding to The Island queries, sources said both Sri Lanka and India were in a dilemma due to the US warning. India couldn’t ignore the plight of the Indian crew members and the Iranian vessels in its backyard.
The Sri Lankan government remains tight-lipped about the vessels stranded in its EEZ. Our efforts to elicit a response from relevant authorities were in vain. In addition to Indians, there are Bangladeshis among the crew members. Iran has explicitly stated the responsibilities of the countries concerned to provide assistance in terms of international law.
The Iranian position was articulated by its Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Dr.Alireza Delkhosh, recently. In a special statement, Ambassador Delkhosh emphasised that in terms of the Convention on the Law of the Sea (Article 98) as well as SOLAS and SAR
Conventions, Sri Lanka couldn’t refrain from providing the needs of the Iranian vessels stranded in its EEZ.
SLMC leader Rauff Hakeem lambasted the NPP government in Parliament for failing to provide assistance to the Iranian ships. The former Minister alleged that the government was simply carrying out dictates of the US. He strongly criticised the way Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath was handling the issue.
MP Namal Rajapaksa, who is in remand custody over the controversial Airbus deal, was further remanded until October 27 by the Colombo Magistrate’s Court yesterday (13).
Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S. Bodaragama made the order after considering submissions by officers of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption and lawyers representing Rajapaksa.
Sri Lanka’s economy is expected to sustain its recovery over the next two years, although growth is projected to moderate amid mounting global uncertainties, according to the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) latest World Economic Outlook.
In its World Economic Outlook 2026: Resilience Under Strain, Urgent Choices, the IMF projects Sri Lanka’s economy to expand by 4% in 2026, slowing to 3.7% in 2027, following estimated growth of 5% in 2025.
Inflation, meanwhile, is forecast to rise to 5.3% in 2026 and 5.4% in 2027, reversing the average deflation rate of 0.5% recorded in 2025.
Unemployment is expected to remain steady at 3.9% throughout the forecast period.
The projections come amid growing pressure on the global economy from the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, elevated energy prices, geopolitical tensions and trade disruptions.
Sri Lanka’s external position is also expected to weaken, with the current account balance projected to shift from a surplus of 1.6% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2025 to deficits of 0.5% in 2026 and 0.3% in 2027.
The IMF’s outlook points to continued economic expansion in Sri Lanka, but with slower growth, rising inflation and a narrowing external surplus giving way to current account deficits over the forecast period.
Heavy showers above 100 mm are likely at some places in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Central, and North-western provinces and in Anuradhapura district.
Sri Lanka, India caught in US-Iran ship crisis
Namal further remanded
IMF projects Lankan economic growth to moderate amidst mounting global uncertainties
Major Gen Pushpakumara assumes command of 56 Infantry Division
Dickwella axed, Bandara earns maiden Test call up
‘Dates have the highest sugar content to fight Coronavirus’
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