The government plans to recruit 13,600 nurses to the public health service between 2025 and 2029, with half of that target expected to be achieved before the end of this year, Health and Mass Media Minister Nalinda Jayatissa said on Friday (29).
The minister made the announcement while attending a ceremony to award appointments to 515 Bachelor of Science (BSc) Nursing graduates at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute.
The 515 graduates were appointed as Grade III Nursing Officers after successfully completing their nursing degrees at state universities and a six-month Nursing Orientation and Coordination Training programme conducted at 31 government hospitals across the country.
Under the guidence of the Health Ministry, the newly recruited nurses will be assigned to vacancies in national hospitals, teaching hospitals and district general hospitals under the central government.
The minister said that with the latest appointments, nearly 30% of the government’s five-year recruitment target has been achieved. A further 2,867 nursing appointments are scheduled to be made in October, bringing the total number recruited under the programme to approximately 50% of the target.
The government has already recruited 3,441 nursing graduates who completed their training at nursing schools last year. With the latest intake, a total of 3,956 nurses have joined the public health service within the past year.
The ministry expects the total number of new nursing appointments made during 2025 and 2026 to reach 6,823. In addition, 1,949 recruits are scheduled to receive appointments in 2028, while another 2,920 are expected to join the service by mid-2029.
The recruitment drive is part of the government’s efforts to address staffing shortages and strengthen Sri Lanka’s healthcare workforce in line with future service expansion plans and international healthcare standards.
The latest intake is significant as it marks the first recruitment of BSc Nursing graduates to Grade III nursing positions since 2021. (Newswire)