Colombo to host the 19th World Trade Union Congress in May 2027, with 800 delegates from 130 countries

Sri Lanka will host the 19th World Trade Union Congress in Colombo from 13 to 15 May 2027, with around 800 delegates from nearly 130 countries expected to attend.

The Minister of Labour has approved hosting the three-day congress in the capital, and the Cabinet of Ministers has been informed of the arrangements and granted approval to proceed, the Daily Mirror reported on Tuesday afternoon.

The congress brings together representatives of trade unions from around the world. According to the filing, the organisation’s presidency selected Sri Lanka to host it, citing the country’s active trade union sector and its strategic geographical location.

Scale

At roughly 800 delegates drawn from close to 130 countries, the congress would be among the larger international gatherings Colombo has hosted recently. The dates fall two weeks after May Day, the busiest date in the Sri Lankan trade union calendar.

Not reported

The filing does not name the Minister of Labour who gave the approval, nor the date of the Cabinet decision. It does not name a venue, give a cost, say whether the state is contributing funding or facilities, or say what the government expects to gain beyond the hosting itself.

It also does not identify the organising body precisely. The account refers to the congress as “organised by the World Trade Union Congress” and to a selection made by “the Presidency of the World Trade Union Congress” — naming the event and the organisation identically. Numbered world trade union congresses are convened by a standing international federation, but the filing does not name that federation, so this desk is not supplying one. Readers should treat the organisation’s identity as unconfirmed pending a filing that names it.

This article is carried on a single source. A search of News.lk, Ada Derana, NewsFirst, Daily News, Island, Daily FT, EconomyNext and Colombo Gazette for the same announcement returned nothing on this congress — only unrelated 2027 events, chiefly Sri Lanka Expo 2027 and assorted trade conferences. Cabinet decisions are normally picked up widely, so other filings are likely to follow; they will be added here.