Sri Lanka has signed agreements with the French media development agency Canal France International (CFI) under the European Union-funded Green Recovery Facility, to strengthen reporting on environmental, climate and economic issues, EconomyNext reported.
The programme is implemented by Expertise France with CFI, the Sri Lanka Press Institute (SLPI) and the Ministry of Mass Media.
What the programme does
Four components were set out:
- Trilingual foundation training — capacity building for 60 journalists across Sinhala, Tamil and English media
- Mentored “Story Labs” — six intensive labs in which journalists receive direct editorial mentoring to investigate, produce and publish data-driven stories on the green transition
- Youth outreach — engaging journalism students and young practitioners through university and youth activities
- A learning and networking event — bringing journalists, experts and policymakers together to share the work produced
The EU’s argument
The EU Delegation to Sri Lanka framed the programme as widening a beat it considers too narrow.
“This initiative provides an opportunity for journalists to broaden this coverage by exploring a wider range of environmental issues, including climate finance, green investment, sustainable development, biodiversity, and the policy and economic dimensions of the green transition,” the delegation said.
Participants are to be equipped to analyse climate finance, examine public policies and follow the flow and impact of green investments.
“By empowering reporters to translate highly technical financial and governance concepts into accessible public-interest narratives, this project ensures that everyday citizens understand how green policies impact their livelihoods, energy prices, and communities,” it said, adding that the programme aims to mainstream a “just transition” and gender-equity lens by drawing in the perspectives of women and vulnerable populations.
EconomyNext noted that environmental journalism in Sri Lanka has traditionally concentrated on natural disasters and their impacts — the gap the training is pitched at.
Where it sits
The Green Recovery Facility is the same EU instrument behind the eco-industrial parks capacity-building programme and the rollout of Sri Lanka’s green finance taxonomy, both also implemented by Expertise France. The media project extends that work from industry and finance to the reporting of them.
One structural feature is worth noting: the Ministry of Mass Media is a co-implementer of a programme intended to strengthen independent scrutiny of public environmental policy. It is the same ministry, under Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa, that also holds the health portfolio and is currently chairing the WHO South-East Asia Regional Committee.
Not reported
EconomyNext did not give the value of the agreements, their duration, or when the training begins. It did not say how the 60 journalists will be selected, how the three language streams are weighted, or which newsrooms are taking part. No official from CFI, Expertise France, the SLPI or the Ministry of Mass Media was quoted directly, and no signing date or venue was given.
The report did not say what editorial safeguards, if any, separate the ministry’s role as co-implementer from the programme’s journalistic output. The account rests on a single newsroom.
