Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Sri Lanka)

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Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Agency overview
විදේශ කටයුතු අමාත්‍යාංශය வெளிநாட்டலுவல்கள் அமைச்சு

Formed	1948
Preceding agency	Ministry of External Affairs and Defence
Jurisdiction	Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
Headquarters	Republic Building, Colombo 1 6°56′15″N 79°50′40″E / 6.937517°N 79.844308°E / 6.937517; 79.844308
Minister responsible	Dinesh Gunawardena, Minister of Foreign Relations
Agency executive	Admiral Jayanath Colombage, Permanent Secretary (Foreign Secretary)
Child agencies	Diplomatic Missions of Sri Lanka Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute of International Relations and Strategic Studies Bandaranaike International Diplomatic Training Institute
Website	mfa.gov.lk

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The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Sinhala: විදේශ කටයුතු අමාත්‍යාංශය Vidhesha Katayuthu Amathyanshaya; Tamil: வெளிநாட்டலுவல்கள் அமைச்சு) (also known as the Foreign Ministry or External Affairs Ministry) is a cabinet ministry of the Government of Sri Lanka responsible for conducting and managing Sri Lanka's foreign relations through oversight of its missions abroad via the Sri Lanka Overseas Service, as well as drafting and general implementation of the nation's foreign policy.

History[]

The ministry was formally established in 1948 following the independence of Ceylon as the Ministry of External Affairs and Defence, coming under the direct control of the Prime Minister of Ceylon. In 1977, J.R Jayawardena's government divided the ministry in two, forming the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of External Affairs. A.C.S Hameed was appointed as the first minister of External Affairs on 23 July 1977.^[1]

Overseas missions[]

The ministry has 65 overseas missions including 13 High Commissions, a Deputy High Commission, 37 Embassies, 2 Permanent Representations to the United Nations, 11 consulates and a representative office. It provides consular assistance to Sri Lankans traveling, working and studying overseas.

Divisions[]

General Administration Division
Overseas Administration Division
Consular Affairs Division
Protocol Division
Public Diplomacy Division
Economic Affairs Division
Finance Division
IT Division
Legal Division
United Nations and Multilateral Affairs Division
South Asia and SAARC Division
Middle East and Africa Division
Europe, Americas and CIS Division
East Asia and Pacific Division

Ministers of Foreign Affairs[]

Permanent Secretaries[]

This list is incomplete; you can help by . (September 2017)

Bernard Tilakaratna, SLOS
Rodney Vandergert, SLOS
Wilhelm Woutersz, SLOS^[2]
R. C. Vendargart, SLOS^[3]
Lionel Fernando, SLAS
G. Wijesiri, SLOS
Nihal Rodrigo, SLOS
B. A. B. Goonetilleke, SLOS
H. M. G. S. Palihakkara, SLOS
Dr. Palitha T.B. Kohona
Karunatilaka Amunugama, SLOS
Kshenuka Seneviratne, SLOS
Esala Weerakoon, SLOS
Prasad Kariyawasam, SLOS
Ravinatha Aryasinha, SLOS

References[]

^ "Former Foreign Ministers". MFA.gov.lk. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
^ Wilhelm Woutersz, BY J. B. Muller
^ Bandara, M.H.M.N. (7 October 2007). "Invest further for a fruitful harvest". SundayObserver.lk. Sunday Observer. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 8 September 2017.

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