Extreme heat in Colombo
A coastal capital where humid heat meets crowded markets, harbours and fish landing sites.
Heat type. Humid heat, all year round.
Heat action plan Parts in place, no full plan found
Colombo Municipal Council, with the Department of Meteorology and SLYCAN Trust, has worked on guidelines for a gender-sensitive heat action plan. The Department of Meteorology issues heat index advisories. No adopted city heat plan found yet.
Vicious cycles the evidence ties to Colombo
| Cycle | Why here | One action that breaks it |
|---|---|---|
| The cooling trap | A University of Colombo study found a pronounced urban heat island, as green space gives way to concrete and asphalt. | Cool by design |
| The poverty–heat trap | Heat advisories ask people to work in the shade; market and fish workers who sell in the open often cannot. | Heat-safe work |
Who heat hits hardest here
- Workers in heat-exposed jobs
- Coastal and riverine communities
Already at work here
- Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN)
- World Meteorological Organization
- UN ESCAP
Listing does not imply partnership, affiliation or endorsement.
Four questions for Colombo’s heat plan
- Is it funded, with a named owner?
- Does it assess who is most vulnerable, and where they live?
- Does it have legal backing, so departments are required to act?
- Does it count indoor and night-time heat, not only daytime highs?
Official warnings: Department of Meteorology, Sri Lanka · Today’s heat and the week ahead: beattheheat.asia/#city-colombo
Sources
- APN and SLYCAN Trust, 2022. apn-gcr.org/publication/colombo-municipal-council-sri-lanka-integrating-heat-stress-management-into-climate-policies-and-guidelines-for-gender-sensitive-heat-action-plans-in-sri-lanka
- News 1st, 2024. english.newsfirst.lk/2024/03/04/heat-advisory-issued-by-sri-lanka-s-met-dept
- Cooling Singapore, citing Chow and Roth, 2006. thegpsc.org/sites/gpsc/files/cooling_singapore_-_digital_urban_climate_twin.pdf
- World Bank, 2025. worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/09/16/bangladesh-faces-health-and-economic-risks-from-rising-temperature-world-bank
- Centre for Policy Research, 2023. cprindia.org/briefsreports/how-is-india-adapting-to-heatwaves-an-assessment-of-heat-action-plans-with-insights-for-transformative-climate-action