In December of 2025, Sri Lanka faced multiple natural disasters-flooding, landslides, cyclones-which killed hundreds of people (around 400), and displaced hundreds of thousands of people (over 200,000). The combination and magnitudes of these climate disasters highlight a significant health inequality within the region, as well as a vulnerability in the Sri Lankan health system.
Cyclone Ditwah most severely affected the central and south-central districts; the districts of Kandy, Badulla, Nuwara Eliya, Kurunegala, and Matale had the highest fatalities, showing the disproportionate vulnerability of hill-country communities to the climate-related disasters. The districts with high level flood risk also tend to have the highest annual cases of dengue and leptospirosis. Dengue is a mosquito-borne disease which causes high fever, severe headache, eye pain, muscle pain, and rashes. Leptospirosis is a disease caused by bacteria, and affects people as well as animals. Leptospirosis is spread in the urine of infected animals, and the risk of this disease increases during hurricanes and floods when people have contact with contaminated water or soil. So, Cyclone Ditwah did not solely impact the climate of Sri Lanka, but it also made the Sri Lankan people more vulnerable to such diseases (both during and after the natural disasters).
The Sri Lankan health system and climate response initiatives are vulnerable because of their separation; climate and weather data is divided from the public health data in this region, even though they are interconnected and interrelated. Large-scale climate crises such as Cyclone Ditwah have a significant impact on the health and well-being of already vulnerable populations, and the risk of exposure to waterborne diseases directly increases with the amount of hurricanes and floods. The correlation between this data needs to be reflected in the health and climate infrastructure in Sri Lanka, in order to prevent the spread of disease and protect the survival of the vulnerable people. According to Groundviews, a possible solution is an integrated emergency response system which would connect the separated infrastructures, such as the DMC (Disaster Management Center), Ministry of Health, and other local hospitals and healthcare workers. A system that combines climate data with disease reporting can preemptively flag high risk exposure areas for dengue and leptospirosis, which can help protect those individuals.
Using a global politics lens, this suggested solution to Sri Lanka’s vulnerability entails the cooperation between various non-state and state actors. Non-governmental organizations such as the DMC need to work together with inter-governmental organizations like the Ministry of Health to ensure the proper protection of the Sri Lankan people and prevention of disease exposure. These organizations also need to work together with other non-state actors such as private actors (healthcare workers, field staff, and district health officials) and private companies like hospitals (albeit in Sri Lanka the healthcare system is a mixture between public government hospitals and private hospitals). This reflects the relevance of interdependence on a regional scale because these different organizations and actors need to work together in order to create an effective response to disasters relating to the intersection between public health and climate. Interdependence in global politics is defined as the mutual reliance and connectivity between states, organizations, or non-state actors. Cooperating and collaborating with entities with shared interests are essential to responding to crises and solving mutual vulnerabilities within a system, which is shown by the aftermath of Cyclone Ditwah in Sri Lanka.
Works Cited:
“About Leptospirosis”, CDC, Published Feb. 10 2026.
Amarasinghe, Pulasthi; Perera, Usha. “After Cyclone Ditwah: Climate Proofing Sri Lanka’s Health System.” Groundviews, Published Dec. 2 2025.
“Sri Lanka Floods and landslides – Cyclonic Storm Ditwah November 2025”, World Health Organization, Published Dec. 2 2025.
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