Sri Lankan women MPs share learnings from India visit

Colombo, June 11 (IANS) A delegation of Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus of Sri Lanka on Thursday met India’s High Commissioner in Colombo to share their learnings and experiences from a visit to India last month.

“Powering Nari Shakti in India, Sri Lanka! Hon. MPs of the Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus of Sri Lanka met High Commissioner Santosh Jha to share their learnings and experiences from the visit to India in May 2026,” the High Commission of India in Colombo wrote on X.

“Explored exchanging best practices in gender budgeting, women and child nutrition, women-led development, digitisation and community engagement,” it added.

According to the Indian High Commission, a 19-member delegation of the Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus of Sri Lanka, led by Saroja Savithri Paulraj, Minister of Women and Child Affairs, visited India from May 10-16. The delegation comprised 15 Members of Parliament and four officials of the Parliament of Sri Lanka, including the Secretary General.

This marks the first-ever visit of the Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus of Sri Lanka to India. It was organised by the Parliamentary Research and Training Institute for Democracies (PRIDE) in collaboration with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Government of India.

“The delegation was provided comprehensive exposure to India’s governance models and focused initiatives in areas of women empowerment and child welfare, including through interactions with Delhi Police, Anganwadi workers, and Women Self-Help Groups,” the High Commission stated.

The visit was in pursuance of the joint vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President of Sri Lanka Anura Kumara Dissanayake to deepen parliamentary cooperation and strengthen linkages between women leaders of India and Sri Lanka.

During the visit, the delegation called on Om Birla, Speaker of the Lok Sabha. Annapurna Devi, Minister for Women and Child Development, also received the delegation. They also met Rekha Gupta, Chief Minister of Delhi.

According to the High Commission, the discussions centred on fostering collaboration and exchanging best practices in areas of women-led development, gender equality, maternal and child welfare, care economy initiatives, and women’s leadership in politics and governance.

“The visit reiterated the continued commitment of India and Sri Lanka to deepen parliamentary engagement and share developmental experiences. It further underscored the importance of women-led transformation and institutional collaboration in advancing inclusive and sustainable development in the two countries,” noted the High Commission.

–IANS

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