The Hon. (Dr.) Hansaka Wijemuni - Deputy Minister of Health and Mass Media

¶ 01 On behalf of the Minister of Health and Mass Media, I answer:

¶ 02 (a) (i) Currently registered in Sri Lanka: - Pharmacies: 5,200 - Pharmacists: 8,521 (Figures include both public and private sectors.)

¶ 03 (ii) Yes. Under Section 120 of the National Medicines Regulatory Authority Act, No. 05 of 2015: - 120(2): A licence holder must employ at least one qualified pharmacist, who shall be responsible for all pharmacy activities relating to medicines, medical devices and borderline products. - 120(3): Dispensing any medicine, medical device or borderline product in every pharmacy shall be done by a registered pharmacist or an assistant pharmacist under the direct supervision of a pharmacist.

¶ 04 (iii) Compliance with Section 120 requires a full-time responsible pharmacist at a pharmacy. Some registered pharmacists are employed in the public or private sector and cannot be full-time responsible pharmacists in retail pharmacies. As a result, licence renewals for approximately 200 pharmacies are temporarily on hold by the NMRA due to applications from persons employed elsewhere.

¶ 05 (iv) To address private sector pharmacist shortages, the Secretary to the Ministry appointed a committee on 10.01.2025. The related letter is placed in the Library.

¶ 06 (b) (i) For the External Pharmacist Examination conducted by the Sri Lanka Medical College Council, the minimum requirement for SLMC registration is a simple pass in Chemistry at GCE (A/L), which is sufficient.

¶ 07 (ii) For the most recent (2023) External Pharmacist Examination, 1,697 applicants qualified; 1,487 sat; around 100 candidates passed all three components (written, practical and viva), a pass rate of about 6.7 per cent.

¶ 08 (c) Does not arise.