The Education and Health Ministers of Member States of the WHO South-East Asia Region (SEAR) pledged to revitalize Health Promoting Schools on Tuesday 12 October 2021. The meeting was organized by WHO with UNESCO, UNICEF, UNFPA and WFP. Hon. Minister of Education, Mr. Dinesh Gunawardena, and Hon. Minister of Health, Dr Keheliya Rambukwella, participated representing Sri Lanka.
On behalf of the SEAR Education and Health Ministers, Hon. Minister Dr. Keheliya Rambukwella proposed the “Call for Action”. The Call urges all Member States to regulate the safe reopening of schools in the context of COVID-19 and to make every school a health promoting school. It emphasizes the importance of schools as ideal settings for delivering health-related interventions for children and adolescents, to help them become productive citizens as a key determinant of the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
The Hon. Minister of Education, Mr. Dinesh Gunawardena, emphasized that Sri Lanka has always understood the importance of health promotion in the school setting. He further highlighted that Sri Lanka has started school health activities way back in 1918 with health inspections, and the immense contribution by the free universal education and free health policies on Sri Lanka’s development goals.
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic as well as the implementation of public health measures, particularly restriction of movement and physical distancing, continues to affect the well-being of school children and adolescents. Children have been affected by the shift to learning on digital devices and e-learning platforms at home, and the effects on child development will be lifelong.
WHO along with its Member States recognized the need to revitalize health promoting schools with the aim of preparing schools for recovery, restoring health promotion activities, and scaling up health-promoting schools to meet the Global Standards. With joint efforts of the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health, together with other stakeholders and partners, Sri Lanka will work towards making every school – a health promoting school.
Additional links
Making every school a health-promoting school – Global standards and indicators
Global Standards for Health Promoting Schools
පාසල් වසා දැමීමෙන් දරුවන්ගේ ශාරීරික හා මානසික සෞඛ්යයට කළ බලපෑම් විශාලයි - සෞඛ්ය ඇමැති
Health Promoting Schools for all in WHO South-East Asia Region