Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena said the government would never marginalize the Tamil people who contributed enormously to strengthen the economy.

Speaking at the 64th World Assembly of the World Health Organization held in Geneva, Switzerland recently, the Minister said the Northern Province healthcare system would be uplifted.

He said the Sri Lankan government had commenced rebuilding the conflict affected Northern Province. "The Health Ministry has taken measures to set up 75 new healthcare institutions in the region and appoint healthcare personnel such as nurses, paramedics, laboratory technicians and doctors, including specialists, he said.

Minister Sirisena pointed out that the Sri Lankan government admires the leadership provided by the WHO in enhancing the global healthcare services, and recognized the services especially of Dr. Margaret Chan the Director General and regional Director of the South East Asia region. Of late, healthcare systems around the globe were challenged by natural calamities, climatic changes and as a result several diseases were beginning to emerge. Non-communicable diseases were found to be increasing, posing a serious threat to the health of the people, he said.

The WHO had shouldered the heavy responsibility of promoting and maintaining excellent healthcare systems throughout the world by assisting to improve primary healthcare.

The Health Minister outlined that the principal aim of the government was to create a healthier nation that could contribute to its economic, social, mental and spiritual development. Sri Lanka had achieved phenomenal progress in providing universal healthcare facilities.

He said the government had taken steps to promote healthy lifestyles among people by reducing the prevalence of common risk factors.

The Minister emphasized that the government of Sri Lanka had initiated the process of revising the National Drug Policy and planned to implement it through the National Drug Regulatory Authority. It had also taken measures to promote rational drug prescribing, regulating prices of drugs and ensuring the safety, efficacy and availability of drugs used in the country. The Sri Lankan government recently had taken an important decision to enhance production capacity of the pharmaceuticals by encouraging the private sector to engage in private-public partnerships, he said.