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Budget allocation for children with neurodevelopmental needs: Parents, experts welcome move
View(s):By Tharushi Weerasinghe
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake announced dedicated healthcare funding for children with neurodevelopmental needs in this week’s national budget.
Accordingly, an allocation of Rs. 200 Mn was made for 2025 to establish a treatment centre for children with neurodevelopment needs, in line with international standards, at the Lady Ridgeway Children’s Hospital in Colombo.
Apart from this, a further allocation of Rs.250 Mn has been made towards the creation of a model daycare centre. President Dissanayake, during his speech, said that these allocations are part of a plan to implement a five-year national programme to improve health, education, and service facilities for children with neurodevelopment needs including autism districtwise.
Dr. Dilini Vipulaguna: Consultant Community Paediatrician
“I am glad that this is being prioritised now because the helplessness that a lot of parents feel in these situations is indescribable,” said Nilu Perera, 48, who has a 25-year-old son with autism. She noted that the lack of guidance and healthcare support is often exacerbated in families with financial difficulties as specialist treatment is too expensive.
Nilu’s son, Megha, received normal schooling until the 8th grade when he was taken out due to negligence by the school he was attending. She claimed that stigmatisation played a key role in her son’s socioemotional learning and that the lack of resources during his childhood affected their ability to access occupational and vocational therapy.
Ranjith Nandana, (name changed to protect privacy), has a five year-old son with speech difficulties due to a neurodevelopmental need. He has been able to take the son for speech therapy but said that he and his wife alternate between Western medicine and indigenous medicine to make their son better.
“The lack of social awareness, and access to the resources that can vastly improve the quality of life of a child with neurodevelopmental needs is a community issue,” said a special needs educator from Pannipitiya. She noted that early detection and therapy play major roles in the development of children with special needs and that currently social safety nets and settings did not cater to these requirements. “We have simple physical and other expressive activities like drawing and students learn certain life skills like feeding themselves but there is more we can do to teach children with neurodevelopmental needs to grow into independent adults.”
“This budget allocation is a first for this area of patient care, and we are very happy they did this,” said Dr. Dilini Vipulaguna, Consultant Community Paediatrician. “While the focus was on autism, we requested attention for all neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism.”Dr. Vipulaguna emphasised that addressing these disorders requires not only doctors but also allied health professionals such as physiotherapists, occupational therapists, and psychologists.
However, brain drain remains a major challenge, with many specialists seeking better opportunities abroad, particularly in the UK, which has a high demand for such expertise. She highlighted the need for cadre expansion and noted that while the Ayathi Centre was entirely built through donations, the lack of human resources remains a significant barrier. “This is something we have repeatedly stressed to the government,” she said. Currently, she remains the only board-certified professional in the field in Sri Lanka.
Ahead of the budget allocation, the National Planning Department consulted experts to understand the current situation. Sri Lanka has guidelines for managing neurodevelopmental disorders, emphasising early detection and timely intervention to improve long-term outcomes. However, the shortage of trained professionals continues to hinder full implementation.
Developmental paediatrics requires extensive training, beginning with three years in general paediatrics followed by three years of subspecialty training in child development. The lengthy process, coupled with high overseas demand, has led to a shortage of specialists. “We invest six years in training, and then the UK recruits them,” Dr. Vipulaguna noted.
She is attached to the Ayathi Centre and provides services in Gampaha. Community pediatric services, while a recognised need are only available in Peradeniya, Galle, Digana, Kandy, Batticaloa, Anuradhapura, and Jaffna, with a newly established centre in Ratnapura. The subspecialty of developmental paediatrics was officially introduced in 2015, though pioneers had already been working to establish research and services before that. The Sri Lanka College of Pediatricians is also currently working to equip general paediatricians with the necessary training to provide developmental services, with support from the government.
Dr. Vipulaguna stressed the need for multidisciplinary development services in every district, ensuring children can be referred to appropriate specialists. Public health teams are being trained in areas where specialists are available, and midwives are now being trained to detect early signs of neurodevelopmental disorders during routine vaccinations. If a child shows atypical development, they are referred to a developmental service, though such services are currently only available in areas with a developmental paediatrician. Expanding these services remains a key budgetary priority.
The Health Ministry is working towards raising early childhood development standards to be on par with Western countries. However,
Sri Lanka’s education system remains largely non-inclusive, and investment in teacher training, Dr. Vipulaguna notes, is critical to bridging this gap.
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