The Hon. (Dr.) Upali Pannilage - Minister of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Speaker, thank you for the opportunity. I draw the House’s attention to section 9 of the Welfare Benefits Act, No. 24 of 2002.

¶ 02 Opposition Members spoke of the recent economic crisis. I table the “Household Survey on Impact of Economic Crisis - 2023” prepared under the then Ministry of Finance, Economic Stabilization and National Policies, not by our present Government. It states: “60.5% of households have decreased their total average monthly income; 91.0% have experienced an increase in average monthly expenditure.”

¶ 03 By January 2024, the national poverty line indicated the minimum per capita amount to meet basic needs was Rs. 17,064. Due to measures we have taken since, the poverty line has trended down; by October 2024 it was Rs. 15,994. Inflation that peaked at 68.4% in 2022 had, by December 2024, turned to -1.2% (deflation on the basket).

¶ 04 Our programme “A Prosperous Country and a Beautiful Life” is not a myth; it is a five-year plan. We understand income and expenditure and how to manage both. A core theme is poverty eradication. Under the Welfare Benefits Board, benefits are categorized as Transitional, Vulnerable, Poor, and Extreme Poor.

¶ 05 Two categories were due to end on 31 December 2024, but we extended them to 31 March 2025. We also increased benefits from January: Poor from Rs. 8,500 to Rs. 10,000; Extreme Poor from Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 17,500. That is why today we present the Aswesuma Welfare Benefit Payment Scheme Order.

¶ 06 Beyond cash transfers, we are implementing empowerment programmes so beneficiaries do not remain dependent. Over the next five years, we will empower two million vulnerable and extreme poor families; in 2025 alone, we will commence empowerment for 400,000 families, focusing on rural poverty eradication and multidimensional poverty—improving living standards, education, and health/disaster resilience.

¶ 07 Under my Ministry, we are rolling out an integrated rural development programme to address rural deprivation. Building on lessons from prior schemes like Janasaviya and Samurdhi while correcting weaknesses, we will revive community-based microfinance and savings, enabling access to credit for rural poor.

¶ 08 Across all communities—Sinhala, Tamil, Muslim, Burgher, Malay—and all provinces, urban and rural alike, we are implementing this agenda to transform Sri Lanka into a prosperous nation and make lives better. Thank you.