- it is estimated that approximately 2500 to 3000 children are born with congenital heart defects in Sri Lanka annually and around 2000 of them need corrective surgery. The current practice in Sri Lanka is to use imported bovine grafts (Tissue valves) which cost about Rs. 300,000/- per graft which is borne by the Government. With the rapid advancement in healthcare offered to children with heart diseases in Sri Lanka, the establishment of a Human Heart Valve Bank to provide cardiac valves and tissues necessary for valve replacement and repair of some of the congenital and acquired heart diseases has become a priority. The process of establishing a Human Heart Valve Bank had been initiated through the Children's Heart Project of Sri Lanka and the Oxford Tissue Bank has already agreed to provide the necessary technical support and advice for the purpose. The proposal made by Hon. Maithripala Sirisena, Minister of Health, to establish a Human Heart Valve Bank at the Lady Ridgeway Hospital in Colombo at a cost of about Rs. 30 million, was approved by the Cabinet.