Nimal Siripala de Silva

Nimal Siripala de Silva was elected Chairman of the Executive Board at its 123rd session in May 2008 and will hold office for one year. Hon. de Silva is Minister of Healthcare and Nutrition in Sri Lanka, a post he has held since April 2004. He qualified as an attorney-at-law and solicitor and worked as a constitutional, human rights and civil lawyer before entering Parliament in 1989, where he continues to promote human rights. He is a member of the National Peace Council of Sri Lanka and Chief Negotiator of the Sri Lanka Peace Delegation. He has occupied several ministerial positions, including health minister on two previous occasions, and is Leader of the House of Parliament. He is familiar with the workings of WHO's governing bodies, having previously been a member of the Board for Sri Lanka and Chairman of Committee B of the Health Assembly, as well as serving on various other committees.