"Our political solution will be an inclusive one," Sri Lankan foreign minister Rohitha Bogollagama, who was also present at the media conference told reporters.
In a one-day visit to the island Ban visited refugee camps in the north to which access is tightly controlled.
"It was a very sobering visit and very saddening," Ban told reporters in the central hill city of Kandy.
"The government is doing a commendable job, but faces many challenges."
The people in the camps were held as human shields by Tamil Tiger separatists in the last stages of the fighting, which ended last week with the elimination of the top leadership of the group, including its leader.
Ban said refugees complained of food and cooking oil shortages.
"We must help the government to meet immediate humanitarian needs."
Though officials originally estimated that only 70,000 people were held as a human shield by Tigers, eventua