National Health Development Fund

(1) There shall be established a Fund to be called the Health. Development Fund” (hereinafter National referred to as ” the Fund “).

(2) The Fund shall, by the name assigned to it by sub- section (1), be a body corporate, and shall have perpetual succession and a common seal and may sue and be sued in such name.

(1) The administration, management and control of the Fund shall be vested in a Board of Trustees constituted as hereinafter provided.

(2) The Board of Trustees of the Fund (hereinafter referred to as ” the Board “) shall consist of

(3) The Secretary of the Ministry of the Minister shall be the Chairman the Board (hereinafter referred to as the chairman)

(4) The Minister may, if he thinks it expedient to do so, remove any appointed member of the Board from office without assigning any reason therefore.

(5) A member of the Board, who has been removed from office under the provisions of subsection (4), shall not be eligible for re-appointment as a member of the Board or to serve the Board in any other capacity.

(6) An appointed member of the Board may at any time resign his office by written communication addressed to the Minister.

(7) If the Chairman or any member of the Board is temporarily unable to discharge the duties of his office on account of ill-health or absence from Sri Lanka or any other cause, the Minister may appoint another person to act in his place.

(8) If an appointed member of the Board vacates his office by death, resignation or removal, prior to the expiration of his term of office, his successor shall, unless such successor vacates his office earlier, hold office for the unexpired portion of the term of office of the person whom he succeeds.

(9) No act or proceeding of the Board shall be deemed to be invalid by reason only of the existence of any vacancy amongst its members or any defect in the appointment of a member thereof.

(10) The Board may make rules to regulate the procedure in regard to its meetings and the transaction of business at such meetings.

(a) acquire, hold or manage property, whether movable or immovable ;

(b) sell, mortgage, exchange or otherwise dispose of, or deal with, any property, whether movable or immovable, to which the Fund may become entitled;

(bb) with the concurrence of the Minister borrow by way of loan or otherwise from any bank or lending institution, such sums of money for the purposes specified in section 7 subject to the condition that the total amount of such borrowing shall not exceed the aggregate of its assets in fixed deposit;

(c) perform all such acts or things as may be necessary to give effect to the provisions of this Act.

(a) the development and promotion of institutions providing health-care services in Sri Lanka ;

(b) the promotion of research among, and the advancement of the education or knowledge of, persons engaged in or associated with the health-care services of Sri Lanka;

(c) to finance any project for the purpose of taking necessary steps for, the prevention of disease among, or protection of the health of, the people of Sri Lanka, ensuring so however that where any donation is received for the purpose of financing a particular project, such donation is, as far as practicable, utilized to finance that particular project;

(d) the purchase of medical equipment and essential drugs used for the purposes of health-care services in Sri Lanka.

(1) There shall be established under the Fund such number of auxiliary funds for specific purposes as may be determined by the Minister.

(2) All moneys received by the Fund by way of gift or donation from private individuals, firms or institutions in Sri Lanka and abroad for promoting or furthering any specific project or purpose shall be credited into the auxiliary fund established for such purpose under subsection (1) and shall be applied by the Board, subject to the directions of the Minister, for that purpose.

(3) In respect of every auxiliary fund established under subsection (1), the Minister shall appoint an advisory body consisting of such number of members as he may deem necessary to advise the Board as to the application of the moneys in such auxiliary fund.

(4) The provisions of this’ Act relating to appointed members of the Board shall, mutatis mutandis, apply to and in relation to, every member of an advisory body, appointed under subsection (3).

(a) to appoint such officers and servants of the Fund as may be necessary for the administration and management of the affairs of the Fund ;

(b) to determine the remuneration payable to the officers and servants so appointed ;

(c) to pay such remuneration and other expenses incurred in the administration of the affairs of the Fund, out of the income of the Fund.

(1) The Board shall cause proper books of accounts to be kept of the income and expenditure of the Fund.

(2) The Auditor-General shall audit the accounts of the Fund every year for the purpose of assisting him in the audit of such , counts,, the Auditor-General may employ the services of any qualified auditor who shall act under his direction and control

(3) For the purpose of meeting the expenses incurred by him in the audit of the accounts of the Fund, the Auditor- General shall be paid out, of the income of the Fund, such remuneration a the Board may determine Any remuneration received from the Fund by the Auditor General shall, after the deduction therefrom of any sums paid by him to any qualified auditor or auditors employed by him for the purpose of such audit, be credited to the Consolidated Fund

(4) The Auditor-General shall, as soon as practicable after the thirty-first day of December of each year, prepare a report on the administration of the affairs of the Fund during that year, together with a statement of the income and expenditure of the Fund, and of the investment of the moneys belonging to the Fund during that year

(5) In this section, the expression ‘ qualified auditor”

(1) The Minister may with the concurrence of the Minister in charge of the subject of Finance, exempt the Fund from the payment of any customs duty on any goods imported by the Fund, if the import of such goods is considered to be conducive for the advancement of the purposes of the Fund.

(2) The Fund shall be exempt from any income tax or wealth tax payable under the Inland Revenue Act, No. 28 of 1979.

(3) Where any person makes a gift to the Fund, he shall be exempt from the payment of gifts tax under the Inland Revenue Act, No. 28 of 1979, to the extent of the total value of the gift.

(4) Where any person makes a donation to the Fund, such donation shall be deemed to be an approved expenditure for the purposes of the Inland Revenue Act, No. 28 of 1979, and the donor shall be entitled to relief under that Act in respect of the total value of such donation.

(5) The provisions of this section shall have effect notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Inland Revenue Act, No. 28 of 1979.