Jakarta:Defence Secretary Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha (Retd) chaired the first Project Board Meeting aimed at strengthening Sri Lanka’s disaster risk management framework at the Ministry of Defence.

According to Ministry of Defence – Sri Lanka, the meeting focused on enhancing national disaster risk management capabilities, improving institutional preparedness, and boosting coordination among relevant agencies. The Defence Secretary emphasized the necessity of inter-agency cooperation and effective coordination to strengthen disaster risk reduction, preparedness, response, and recovery mechanisms.

The discussions included participation from the Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Sri Lanka, Ms. Azusa Kubota, and the European Union Head of Cooperation for Sri Lanka and the Maldives, Ms. Virginie Lafleur-Tighe.

Also present were the Directors General of the Disaster Management Centre (DMC) and the National Building Research Institute (NBRI), alongside senior officials from UNDP, the Irrigation Department, the Department of Meteorology, the Ministry of Public Administration, the National Disaster Relief Services Centre (NDRSC), Save the Children, and other relevant stakeholder institutions.