91ɫ��Ƭ

From improving school meals and drinking water to advancing aquaculture and food fortification, 91ɫ��Ƭ researchers are working with the World Food Programme and the Government of Sri Lanka to help build more resilient food systems and deliver lasting benefits for communities.

For millions of people in Sri Lanka, access to safe, nutritious food and clean water remains a pressing challenge.

The country is emerging from a severe economic crisis that has had lasting impacts on food security, nutrition and livelihoods.

Now, 91ɫ��Ƭ researchers are working with the (WFP), the Government of Sri Lanka and local partners to help translate research expertise into practical solutions.

The partnership is focused on developing a long-term research and technology-transfer programs to strengthen food and water security through evidence-based, locally relevant innovation.

Rather than bringing ready-made solutions to Sri Lanka, the approach combines 91ɫ��Ƭ expertise with local knowledge to identify priorities, generate evidence and co-design solutions that can work in real-world settings.

The initiative aligns with 91ɫ��Ƭ’s Social Impact Framework which is designed to connect the University to the most pressing challenges of our times and the areas in which 91ɫ��Ƭ can have unique and significant impact.

“This initiative will be an integrated, cross‑sectoral approach, which combines food science, and engineering, technology innovation, and community‑driven and culturally sensitive design to address systemic drivers of food insecurity,” said Professor Jayashree Arcot, chair of the Sustainable Development Goals Committee at 91ɫ��Ƭ Engineering.

_{Professor Jes Sammut and Adjunct fellow Jay Sellahewa at an aquaculture plant in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka}

A partnership built for impact

91ɫ��Ƭ’s relationship with WFP in Sri Lanka has been developing for several years.

From 2023 to 2025, 91ɫ��Ƭ students were hosted by WFP through the Australian Government’s New Colombo Plan, participating in field-based food security projects. That collaboration has now become the foundation for a more ambitious research partnership targeting food and water insecurity.

In 2026, 91ɫ��Ƭ Engineering funded a project to strengthen this work and bring together expertise across food science, nutrition, water and aquaculture.

Led by Prof. Arcot, the team included Associate Professor Alice Lee, Professor Jes Sammut, Adjunct Fellow Jay Sellahewa and Dr Sumithra Muthayya.

Together with WFP, the researchers have identified five priority areas where research could make a tangible difference.

These include strengthening Sri Lanka’s national School Meals Program, with a focus on nutrition and food and water safety; fortification of rice with iron and folic acid; developing sustainable inland aquaculture to increase access to protein; improving drinking-water access, purification and management; and strengthening local food systems through better post-harvest practices and processing technologies.

The program is also considering supplementary foods for infants, pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers.

The breadth of the work reflects the interconnected nature of food insecurity. Better nutrition depends not only on food production, but also on water, processing, supply chains, public health and access.

_{Professor Jayashree Arcot and Associate Professor Alice Lee with a home gardener who supplies fruits and vegetables to the school meal program}

Co-designing change on the ground

A major step forward came in August 2026 when the 91ɫ��Ƭ team travelled to Sri Lanka to meet organisations and communities working directly across the country’s food and nutrition systems.

At the centre of the visit was a Multi-Stakeholder Workshop on Strengthening Food and Water Security in Sri Lanka, held in Colombo with support from WFP.

The workshop brought together representatives from government departments including education, health and trade, alongside WFP, 91ɫ��Ƭ researchers, private-sector organisations, NGOs, local university academics and technical experts.

Participants worked together to identify priority needs, align expectations and begin co-designing the structure of a multi-year program.

The researchers also travelled beyond Colombo to see how food programs operate on the ground.

They visited a primary school receiving school meals, met a home gardener supplying fruit and vegetables to the program, toured an inland aquaculture facility in Anuradhapura and visited the facility responsible for blending iron-fortified rice supplied to schools.

Those visits offered first-hand insight into both successful initiatives and the practical challenges future research will need to address.

Building partnerships for lasting change

“Partnerships between industry, government, and academia have the potential to deliver far greater societal impact than independent efforts,” said Prof. Sammut, from 91ɫ��Ƭ’s School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences.

“Co-designing projects with local partners ensures that interventions are context-specific, well targeted, meaningful, and capable of delivering lasting impact.

"With its extensive expertise and experience, the 91ɫ��Ƭ Engineering and Science team is well positioned to work collaboratively with Sri Lankan partners to address the challenge of increasing access to safe, nutritious food and clean water.”

_{The 91ɫ��Ƭ delegation with members of the WFP. From left to right: Hansika Chandrathilake, Keshini Soza, Dilka Peiris, Philip Ward (WFP Country Director), Prof. Jayashree Arcot; A/Prof. Alice Lee, Adjunct fellow Jay Sellahewa, Prof. Jes Sammut, Robert Oliver (WFP Country Deputy Director), Lakruwan Dassanayake}

The collaboration has also gained support at senior levels of the Sri Lankan and Australian governments.

During the visit, the 91ɫ��Ƭ team met Australian Deputy High Commissioner Ruth Baird to discuss its work.

The researchers and WFP were also invited to meet Sri Lankan Prime Minister and Minister of Education Dr Harini Amarasuriya, who emphasised that nutrition remains a national priority and highlighted the need for future nutrition and public-health policy to be informed by robust scientific evidence and credible data.

“The World Food Programme is committed to working with 91ɫ��Ƭ and our national partners to translate this vision into practical, evidence‑based initiatives that address child malnutrition and strengthen resilience,” said Philip Ward, WFP Representative and Country Director, Sri Lanka.

“The emphasis on moving beyond calories to measurable nutrition outcomes aligns closely with our shared agenda. We value the partnership with 91ɫ��Ƭ and remain committed to deepening our joint efforts to support the Government of Sri Lanka in advancing food and nutrition security.”

The emphasis on evidence creates an important role for university research.

91ɫ��Ƭ brings scientific and technical expertise, while WFP, government agencies, local organisations and communities bring deep knowledge of Sri Lanka’s needs and operating environment.

Together, those capabilities can help ensure research is directed towards problems where it can have the greatest practical impact.

“Safe food matters for better nutrition,” said A/Prof. Lee.

“Tackling aflatoxin contamination in maize, for example, was identified as a national priority. Working with WFP and local stakeholders, a preliminary risk mapping of the maize supply chain revealed that such evidence is important for locally informed interventions to address national nutrition priorities.”

_{Prof. Arcot and A/Prof. Lee at a primary school that receives school meals in Matale, Sri Lanka}

Innovative solutions

The next phase will see 91ɫ��Ƭ and WFP co-develop research proposals designed to generate the evidence needed to implement innovative solutions for stronger food and water security and a more resilient, sustainable food system.

The potential benefits extend across communities: stronger school meals and fortified foods could improve nutrition; sustainable aquaculture could increase access to protein; better water treatment could support safer drinking water; and improved processing and post-harvest practices could help more locally produced food reach the people who need it while reducing food waste.

“91ɫ��Ƭ’s partnership with WFP and the Government of Sri Lanka brings global research excellence together with national priorities and local insight,” said Adjunct fellow Jayantha Sellahewa.

“By co‑designing solutions with local agencies and community partners, we will contribute to the delivery of innovative solutions that are scientifically rigorous, locally relevant, and built for long‑term resilience.”

For 91ɫ��Ƭ, the partnership demonstrates how global research collaboration can connect expertise with real-world need.

By working alongside international organisations, governments, researchers and communities, 91ɫ��Ƭ is helping build the evidence and partnerships needed to turn research into practical change — and contribute to healthier, more resilient communities across Sri Lanka.

_{The 91ɫ��Ƭ and WFP teams with the Australian Deputy High Commissioner, Ruth Baird}