Women in the Sri Lankan Parliament

The Parliament of Sri Lanka and its predecessors (the National State Assembly, the Parliament of Ceylon and the State Council of Ceylon) have included women Members of Parliament or other applicable representatives continuously since 1931. Adeline Molamure, daughter of J. H. Meedeniya and wife of Alfred Francis Molamure, both State Councillors, was the first woman representative, elected to the State Council in the 1931 election.

• Top left: Adeline Molamure became the first female legislator in Sri Lanka in 1931.
• Top right: Sirimavo Bandaranaike became the world's first female Prime Minister in 1960.
• Bottom left: Chandrika Kumaratunga became the second female Prime Minister and later the first female President of Sri Lanka in 1994.
• Bottom right: Harini Amarasuriya became the third female Prime Minister of Sri Lanka in 2024.

Women in the Sri Lankan parliament, however small in numbers, have held high positions in Parliament and the cabinet. Three women have become Prime Minister and one has gone on to become the President of Sri Lanka. Sirimavo Bandaranaike became the world's first female head of government on 21 July 1960, holding the post for a non-consecutive 17 years. Her daughter, Chandrika Kumaratunga, became Sri Lanka's first modern female head of state and president.^[1]

The 17th Parliament of Sri Lanka, the current parliament elected in 2024, has the highest number of female legislators with 22 female MPs.^[2][3][4]