It gives me great pleasure to write to you as the 42nd President of The College of Surgeons of Sri Lanka. It is an honour and privilege as well as a great responsibility that has been bestowed upon me, to lead this organisation in the coming year. 

Inclusivity, equity and sustainability will be the theme of the coming year and a course has been charted with these as guiding principles. Inclusivity of all surgeons, be they members or non-members is crucial as they all have a significant role to play in further development of the profession as well as delivery of surgical services to Sri Lanka. Therefore it is the prerogative of the CSSL to bring all surgeons and affiliated organisations into its fold and in turn work towards the betterment of all. Equity for surgeons as well as patients will be a priority this year. The Council and I will work towards ensuring that surgeons throughout the island are able to access the facilities they need to work at their optimum capacity. The College will support and back all surgeons in their dialogues with the Ministry of health and other entities to improve the surgical facilities at their stations, thereby contributing to the enhancement of regional surgical services. The overall winners in this endeavour will be the patients who will be able to get equitable care in their regions. Given the current economic climate as well as the erosion of skilled human resources to foreign shores, the College will work with the Ministry of Health to design and develop strategies for the delivery of surgical care islandwide with an emphasis on sustainable solutions. 

The participation of the regional chapters will be encouraged and facilitated this year, with a focus on bolstering membership as well as active engagement with the activities of the College. Aligning with the principles of inclusivity and equity, the regional chapters will be strengthened to improve knowledge and training opportunities for their members, trainees, grade medical officers and other members of the surgical teams. Regional training for delivery of quality care for surgical and trauma for hospital-based surgical teams as well as for general practitioners has been planned. 

The College of Surgeons of Sri Lanka has over the years cultivated alliances and strong partnerships with the sister colleges in the UK, Australia, SAARC countries, Malaysia and Thailand. This has led to collaboration in terms of academic exchange, training and examinations which have been mutually beneficial. We hope to strengthen these relationships, exploring new avenues as well has nurturing existing programmes. 

The infrastructure of the College has been enhanced over the past 3 years. Not only in terms of physical assets such as the establishment of the surgical museum, renovation of the Dr Noel and Nora Bartholomeusz Foundation premises, but also the development of digital and virtual resources such as the website and mobile application. We hope to bring these elements together to elevate the level of functionality of the College and also generate revenue. 

The Sri Lanka Surgical Congress 2024 will be the flagship event on the College calendar, and this year will return to the hill capital of Kandy. The groundwork for an international programme is underway for a 3-day conference from September 11th to the 14th. 

I along with my council, look forward to an active and productive year for the College. We have set ourselves ambitious yet pragmatic goals with the membership, profession and patients in mind. Based on the responses I have seen thus far, I have no doubt that there will be unprecedented support from all quarters to achieve these goals.

Dr S M M Niyas