Training Report: Millennium Development Goals in the SAARC Region

Working Sessions
sometime even before that. There is a widespread network of Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Care Clinics,
as well as services of trained Public Health Midwives. Although free health care was instrumental in raising
health standards, a government cannot continuously offer free health care due to severe budgetary constraints
and its inflationary impact. Private sector has also now vigorously entered to this health business and this also
positively contributed to increase health related indicators of the nation. Overall, poor peoples’ health and
nutrition related education level have also risen up with income increases.
With regard to the fifth goal, ‘Improve Maternal Health’ there has been a consistent and a steep decline in the
maternal mortality ratio for over five decades. Sri Lanka had achieved the maternal mortality rate of 19.7 per
100,000 live births in 2003 against the target of 10.6 per 100,000 live births to be achieved in 2015. The
percentage of births attended by skilled health personnel, which is also an indicator that measures the progress
of the fifth goal, has reached 98.5% against the target of 100%.
Towards the sixth goal, ‘Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Other Diseases’, Sri Lanka needs to pay more
attention on the detection of HIV/AIDS and other diseases. Sri Lanka has been identified as a low HIV/AIDS
prevalence country with a detection rate of 0.1 per cent prevalence of HIV/AIDS in age group of 15-49.
However, there has been an increase in the number of cases reported during the past few years requiring
renewed attention to meet the goal fully. Although the number of Malaria cases reported per year has reduced
sharply from 210,039 in 2000 to just 591 in 2006, Incidence of Tuberculosis (TB) and dengue is still at an
unsatisfactory level. There were 8,996 newly identified TB cases reported in 2008 compared with 8,232 in
2000. Further, the TB associated deaths of 347 were reported in 2006. Sri Lanka has to be more proactive in
dengue fever eradication as it almost came to epidemic situation in some urban areas of the country by
reporting many deaths.
In terms of MDG seven: ‘Ensuring Environmental Sustainability’, extra collective attention is necessary.
Deforestation, disruption of biological diversity and emission of carbon dioxide and other harmful gases still
remain. As a result of pollution, the percentage of population that does not have access to safe sources of
drinking water and safe sanitation can increase, which could exacerbate due to ignorance. Developing
countries including Sri Lanka may now face new challenges in meeting MDGs, on the fallout of the current
global economic crisis and other set back such as abolition of preferential trade concessions such as GSP The
implications of such a set-back could be long-term in nature and could affect the efforts of achieving MDGs
by those countries.
Regarding the targets in MDG 8, Sri Lankan has achieved mixed results. Addressing the special needs of the
Least Developed Countries (LDCs) includes tariff- and quota-free access for Least Developed Countries’
exports, enhanced program of debt relief. In these areas the international community has more responsibility
rather the Sri Lankan side. But some of the given concessions such as GSP (The EU's Generalized System of
Preferences is a trade arrangement through which the EU provides preferential access to the EU market to Sri
Lankan over 6400 exports items, in the form of reduced tariffs for their goods when entering the EU market)
have stopped. In recent past, obtaining commercial loans from expensive world market sources have
increased. Sri Lankan public health sector always suffer many issues related to the bad governance starting
from drug and medical equipment purchases.
Sri Lankan has many good achievements in the ICT field due to very many new initiatives taken by the
government. Especially e-government project, ICT sector deregulation and ICT infrastructure development
caused for these achievements. In 2009 Sri Lanka’s telephone density was around 85 (both fixed and mobile)
and internet and e-mail density is 1.7 for 100 people in population. However, government has 147 web sites
which provide various information and services to public in addition to various other services provided by the
e-Lanka project under Information and Communication Technology Agency.
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