COLOMBO – The foundation stone for a new eight-storey Cardiology Unit at the District General Hospital, Trincomalee, was laid on Wednesday (16) under a major health-sector project funded through a JPY 10.6 billion (approximately US$70 million) concessional loan from the Government of Japan.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, Japanese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Akio Isomata, Health and Mass Media Minister Dr Nalinda Jayatissa and JICA Sri Lanka Chief Representative Shigeo Honzu attended the foundation stone-laying ceremony.
Constructed under Japan’s Health and Medical Service Improvement Project, the initiative is aimed at strengthening Sri Lanka’s capacity to prevent, diagnose and treat non-communicable diseases (NCDs), particularly cardiovascular diseases, by improving medical facilities, providing advanced equipment and strengthening the training of healthcare personnel.
The new Trincomalee Cardiology Unit, expected to become operational from 2028, will comprise eight floors and will be equipped with a catheterization laboratory (Cath Lab), CT scanning and X-ray facilities.
Health Minister Jayatissa said the improved facilities would help reduce the waiting time for patients currently awaiting specialized cardiac treatment. He also expressed the government’s appreciation to Japan and its people for supporting the construction and equipping of the new cardiology facility in Trincomalee.
The Japan-funded project also includes the construction of a new Cardiology and Cardiothoracic Complex at Teaching Hospital Anuradhapura, for which a foundation stone was also laid on Wednesday.
In addition, advanced medical equipment, including equipment manufactured by Japanese companies, will be provided to the two hospitals as well as three other major tertiary hospitals in Kandy, Kurunegala and Badulla.
Training equipment will also be provided for Medical Laboratory Technologists, while medical personnel will receive training in the maintenance of equipment supplied under the project.
Speaking at the Trincomalee ceremony, Ambassador Isomata said Japan had a longstanding partnership with Sri Lanka in the health sector, recalling Japanese assistance in the establishment of Sri Jayewardenepura General Hospital, Peradeniya Teaching Hospital and the Faculty of Dental Sciences at the University of Peradeniya.
He said the new project represented another stage of Japan’s longstanding cooperation with Sri Lanka.
The Ambassador noted that NCDs account for more than 80% of deaths in Sri Lanka, with cardiovascular diseases alone accounting for approximately 40%, and expressed hope that the new facilities would enable people in the Eastern Province to receive faster and more accurate diagnosis and treatment, while helping to save lives.
Isomata also highlighted Japan’s longstanding development assistance to Sri Lanka’s Northern and Eastern Provinces, including demining assistance provided over the past 25 years.
He said Japan considered national reconciliation and sustainable development to be closely interconnected, describing the Trincomalee project as a tangible demonstration of Japan’s continued commitment to the well-being of people in the Eastern Province.
Minister Jayatissa expressed the government’s appreciation to Japan and its people for supporting the construction and equipping of the new cardiology facility in Trincomalee.

-ENCL
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