National Policy on Archives and Records Management
Effective Date: 07.04.2025
Download: National Policy on Archives and Records Management (PDF, 1.8 MB)
The need for a National Policy on Archives and Records Management was initially brought up during discussions of the Committee to Revise the National Archives Law No. 48 of 1973 that was appointed by the Secretary to the Minister of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs by order of Cabinet Decision No. 22/1744/620/021 taken on 21.11.2022. The committee advised that a National Policy should be developed before revising the law.
Committee members
The same committee was then appointed to formulate the policy by the Secretary to the Minister of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs. The members of the committee are as follows.
i. Mr. Nigel Nugawela, Archivist (Chairperson)
ii. Dr. Nadeera Rupesinghe, Director General National Archives (Member)
iii. Prof. Rohan Samarajiva, Former Chairman, Information and Communication Technology Agency (ICTA) (Member)
iv. Mr. Piyatissa Ranasinghe, Former Director General, RTI Commission (Member)
v. Mr. Ravindra Priyantha Lal, Lecturer, University College of Ratmalana, University of Vocational Technology (Member)
Ms. Chamila Priyangani, National Archives Assistant Director served as the convener for the committee. Later, a staff member of the Department of National Planning was also appointed to the committee.
Drafting process
Consultations were held with public authorities (bilateral meetings with ministries, technical agencies, national bodies) and the general public (public comments on a policy draft) in July and August of 2023.
Based on the written submissions from the public, public hearings were scheduled to be held in Kandy, Jaffna and Colombo. However, due to the lack of responses from both Kandy and Jaffna, only the hearing scheduled for Colombo took place on 25.08.2023 at the Department of National Archives.
The policy was initially finalised on 09.11.2023. However, due to the national policy format introduced by the Department of National Planning, a member of that department, Ms Harshani Wijesinghe, was appointed to the committee and it was further revised and finalised on 11.12.2024.
The concurrence of the Cabinet of Ministers for the National Policy on Archives and Records Management was granted on 07.04.2025.
Rationale for National Policy
A National Policy in this area of management has never been introduced before, thus contributing to decades of inaction, de-prioritization and lack of knowledge of the importance of the field of archives and records management. The provision of records management guidance by various public authorities increases the risk of conflicting directions, leading to the mismanagement of public records.
The systematic management and preservation of public records across public authorities requires a coherent vision and authority to drive action.
Importance of National Policy
Systematically managed archives and records are the foundation for well-structured, efficient public administration. Well maintained public archives and records allow for more informed government planning through performance monitoring and improvements.
Archives and records also contain information pertaining to businesses (land ownership, intellectual property rights, contracts et cetera), thus preserving valuable business knowledge, and preserving records used in legal and administrative processes. A smoothly running records management and national archival system then gives rise to more efficient public service.
The policy aims to create a climate of responsible governance and accountability to avoid the loss of institutional memory through inefficient record-keeping, lack of standardised procedures and inadequate resources.
Non-discriminatory and efficient archives and records management is essential to beginning paths of societal healing, reconciliation and truth-seeking processes.
The policy encourages embracing new technologies in this field to meet global archives and records management standards in order to increase access and transparency regarding public archives and records.
