Transforming Diabetes Care Across Sri Lanka
- About Nirogi Lanka
Building a Healthier Future Together
Nirogi Lanka is a long-term, multi-phase national initiative grounded in health promotion principles, aimed at improving wellbeing and reducing the burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), particularly diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Rather than focusing solely on screening and disease detection, Nirogi Lanka adopts a holistic, population-level approach that empowers individuals and communities to take control of their health. As a flagship initiative of the Sri Lanka Medical Association, implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Health, World Diabetes Foundation, and Rotary International, the program emphasizes community-driven action, collective responsibility, and sustainable behavior change. Since its inception in 2009, Nirogi Lanka has reached thousands across Sri Lanka, helping communities adopt healthier lifestyles through education, early detection, and behaviour change.
Since 2009, Nirogi Lanka has engaged communities across Sri Lanka through participatory approaches, helping people identify the factors that influence their health, co-create practical solutions, and build supportive environments for healthy living.
At its core, the initiative focuses on:
• Empowering communities to take ownership of their health
• Promoting healthy lifestyles and addressing key determinants
• Encouraging collective action across sectors
• Ensuring continuous monitoring, evaluation, and improvement
By prioritizing long-term engagement and local ownership, Nirogi Lanka moves beyond short-term interventions to create lasting, meaningful improvements in health and wellbeing.
- The Project Aims
Our Aim & Focus Areas
Enhancing Diabetes Care Quality
Improving overall diabetes care by strengthening the skills of allied health professionals. Promoting self-care practices, including effective diabetic foot care. Reducing complications and hospitalizations through better care delivery.
Strengthening Long-Term Patient Follow-Up
Ensuring continuous monitoring of high-risk individuals and diabetes patients. Focusing on women with a history of gestational diabetes. Supporting better health outcomes in urban and semi-urban communities.
Advancing Specialized Diabetes Care
Improving the quality of diabetic foot care to prevent severe complications. Enhancing maternal diabetes care for safer pregnancies and outcomes. Encouraging early intervention and proper disease management.
Promoting Prevention & Healthy Lifestyles
Encouraging primary prevention through awareness and education programs. Collaborating with health and education sectors to reach communities. Empowering individuals to adopt healthier lifestyles and reduce diabetes risk.
- The Project Objectives
Our Project Objectives
1. Building Healthcare Capacity
Establishing a national programme to train diabetes nurse educators.
Strengthening the skills of healthcare professionals across Sri Lanka.
Improving the overall quality and delivery of diabetes care services.
2. Strengthening Integrated Care Systems
Developing a strong partnership between primary and tertiary healthcare.
Enhancing infrastructure and services within primary care settings.
Improving diagnosis, treatment, and management of diabetes and CVD risks.
3. Empowering Communities for Prevention
Encouraging community and family participation in diabetes prevention.
Promoting healthy behaviours in schools, workplaces, and communities.
Raising awareness to reduce the risk of Type 2 diabetes.
4. Expanding Impact Through Sustainable Action
Identifying at-risk individuals and providing early preventive care.
Building capacity among health workers and community promoters.
Using evidence-based results to influence national health policies.
- Expected Outcomes
Focused on Diabetes Care and Prevention Across Sri Lanka
- Capacity building of human and technical resources for diabetes specific care services in the state and semi-government health care sectors in Colombo.
- To build effective bridges between preventive and curative health services in relation to diabetes care.
- To improve healthy life styles of the individuals, families and enhance community participation in the prevention of diabetes and cardiovascular disease in Sri Lanka.
The final goal of the project was to generate the above evidence and thereby advocate policy makers and planners to replicate the approaches adopted in the project island wide.
The project aimed to prevent vulnerable communities from developing diabetes and its complications including CVD. It also aimed to improve the quality of diabetic care with enhanced secondary prevention in the delivery of care specifically in gestational diabetes and the diabetic foot. Since it particularly targeted the lower socio-economic groups, this project fulfilled the necessary criteria as a charitable project. For achieving these aims, the project was executed in two Phases (Phase I: 2009-2012 and Phase II: 2013-2016)