We were honoured to successfully host Day 1 of the TRANSLATE & CONTROL Programme Dissemination Event on 4th December in Colombo, Sri Lanka, marking a significant milestone in tri-country collaboration between Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and the United Kingdom in the fields of mental health, tuberculosis, and global health research. The day commenced with a high-level inaugural session, featuring a message from the Hon. Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa, Minister of Health & Mass Media, delivered by Dr. Sudath Samaraweera, Chairman, National Science Foundation, and a special address by Dr. Palitha Mahipala, Former Secretary to the Ministry of Health. The session highlighted global partnerships with keynote contributions from Keele University, UK, and Khyber Medical University, Pakistan.
Scientific sessions throughout the day focused on the CONTROL Programme, showcasing mental health in tuberculosis care, intervention development and trial findings, psychosocial interventions for chronic infectious diseases, and process evaluations, implementation strategies, and scale-up approaches. A high-impact panel discussion brought together senior leaders from national tuberculosis programmes, clinicians, and global experts to discuss real-world implementation challenges and solutions.
The afternoon was dedicated to capacity development, featuring global health research training initiatives, PhD and Master’s programme developments, South–South collaboration for research strengthening, and research presentations by PhD scholars from the CONTROL Programme. This impactful first day set a strong foundation for advancing evidence-based mental health and TB research through global collaboration.
Following the success of the TRANSLATE Training Workshop held in Galle on the 2nd and 3rd of December 2025, Day 2 of the TRANSLATE & CONTROL Programme Dissemination Event on the 5th of December continued to build on the strong foundation established on Day 1. Day 2, dedicated to the TRANSLATE Programme, focused on early intervention in psychosis and severe mental illness in low- and middle-income countries. The day featured insightful scientific sessions on traditional healing and mental health through the HOPE Study, early intervention in psychosis in LMICs, TRANSLATE implementation in Pakistan and Sri Lanka, and stakeholder perspectives on postpartum psychosis services.
A distinguished panel discussion brought together leading experts from Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and the UK to reflect on challenges and opportunities in delivering community-based mental health care. The Plenary Session explored advancing the impact of global health research and offered public mental health perspectives on severe mental illness in Sri Lanka.
The event concluded with a meaningful Closing Ceremony, which included a comprehensive summary of the two-day programme, future directions for tri-country collaboration between Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and the UK, and a strong commitment to capacity building, postgraduate training, and sustainable research partnerships. The TRANSLATE & CONTROL Dissemination Event successfully reinforced a shared vision for translating research into real-world clinical and public health impact, strengthening global mental health systems across regions.
