The Southeast Asia & Central Asia Division handles matters pertaining to Sri Lanka’s relations with  eleven (11) countries in the ASEAN region, namely Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Viet Nam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Myanmar, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Brunei Darussalam, and Timor-Leste, as well as five (05) Central Asian countries, namely Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan. 

The Division also oversees Sri Lanka’s engagement with relevant multilateral organizations, including ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) and the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA). 

The Division is tasked with coordinating Sri Lanka’s bilateral relations with Southeast Asian and Central Asian countries, taking into account evolving political and economic developments.

Sri Lanka maintains seven (07) resident Missions in the region. The Division also coordinates with six (06) resident Missions of Southeast and Central Asian countries accredited to Sri Lanka and based in Colombo. It facilitates Sri Lanka’s engagement with these countries in the political, economic, defence, social, and technical spheres.