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

¶ 01 Hon. Chairman, at a time when we are presenting a people’s Budget for 2026 in a country that is being stabilized, I wish to use this opportunity to outline what our Ministry of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment has implemented over the past year using public funds, and what we have planned for 2026. I am also pleased to speak after Hon. Dr. Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam who raised constructive points regarding our Ministry; we are already working on many of those matters, and we will incorporate his suggestions to further strengthen our programmes.

¶ 02 Our Ministry covers three main sectors and works through ten affiliated institutions. In 2025, we established a Rural Development Agency and also set up a Rural Development Training and Research Institute under the Ministry. In addition, with the cooperation of the World Food Programme Secretariat, we are implementing initiatives for rural development. On social security, our objective is to build an inclusive society. To that end, the Sri Lanka Social Security Board, Department of Social Services, National Secretariat for Persons with Disabilities, National Council for Elders and the National Secretariat for Elders, and the National Institute of Social Development are all being aligned toward creating such an inclusive society.

¶ 03 With respect to long-running efforts to eradicate poverty, the Samurdhi Development Department has played a significant role. Some Members of the Opposition asked about our pathway to end poverty. This is not confined to a single institution or Ministry, nor is it merely about giving handouts. We will assist those who need assistance, empower those who can be empowered, and secure the contribution of those who can participate in production, under a broad, integrated approach.

¶ 04 Accordingly, the Samurdhi Development Department has been reoriented fully toward community empowerment. Over the past year, we launched this programme to empower people not only economically, but also in human development, financial literacy and social security. Samurdhi officers visited low-income households, collected information and prepared family development plans, assessing household characteristics, available resources and local market conditions to craft suitable business development plans. In 2025, we prepared such plans and economically empowered about 292,000 families, including livelihood support, self-employment facilitation, and provision of necessary technical knowledge.

¶ 05 Recognizing the importance of human capital, we started the “Next Sri Lanka” programme to place youth from low-income families—especially those who have sat for O/L and A/L but lack jobs—into employment, thereby supporting both household economies and social progress. To date, 65,670 youth have enrolled. This year we launched vocational training leading to NVQ Level 3 and 4 in sectors such as hospitality, care services, industrial and ICT, and will continue next year.

¶ 06 Regarding the Samurdhi Development Department’s financial discipline, there were public concerns. Therefore, in 2025 we amended the law to subject all 1,097 Samurdhi Banks to Government audit. We also introduced a unified financial system to prevent malpractices and address systemic gaps, and have been working to minimize financial irregularities.

¶ 07 For social assistance, under the “Samurdhi Sipdora” scholarship, we provided LKR 1,500 per month and supported 33,265 children in 2025. The “Samurdhi Housing Assistance” programme was integrated with the Housing Ministry’s guidelines and the grant increased up to LKR 1 million; 903 projects have commenced.

¶ 08 We also resolved several issues faced by Samurdhi employees: we addressed retirement-related concerns; limited the annual surcharge on the Employees’ Provident Fund to a one-time interest charge; and increased office allowances to LKR 2,000 in rural areas and LKR 3,000 in urban areas.

¶ 09 Under the 2026 Budget, LKR 27,381 million has been allocated to the Samurdhi Department, which we will direct to community empowerment through a five-pronged approach, including operationalizing “Next Sri Lanka”.

¶ 10 On social security, building an inclusive society requires catering to all groups—across gender, disability status, and life stages. The Sri Lanka Social Security Board’s contributory pension scheme now has close to one million contributors. While public servants have pensions and some in the private sector have gratuities, those in the informal sector often have no social protection when they cannot contribute to the labour force. We are establishing a pathway to provide that protection.

¶ 11 On the legal framework, we are advancing key reforms. We have prepared amendments to the Protection of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, No. 28 of 1996, now referred to the Attorney General’s Department. A draft Sign Language Bill has also been finalized and referred. We are readying regulations to improve accessibility, and, with the Department of Census and Statistics and UNDP, we are establishing a data system on persons with disabilities. We have formulated a national policy to engage older persons as active stakeholders in the “silver economy”, aligning with UN policy and the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing, and are developing an action plan. We have also prepared amendments to the Protection of the Rights of Elders Act, No. 9 of 2000 (as amended by Act No. 5 of 2011), now with the Attorney General, to be brought to Parliament shortly.

¶ 12 We increased the monthly allowance for low-income families with a person with disability from LKR 5,000 to LKR 10,000. The housing grant for families with a person with disability was increased from LKR 500,000 to LKR 700,000 in January 2025, and to LKR 1 million in August 2025; 269 families have received it to date, and we will expand in 2026. The grant for assistive devices was increased from LKR 20,000 to LKR 50,000 from May 2025, benefiting 3,550 persons in 2025, and will be further expanded in 2026.

¶ 13 To promote employment of persons with disabilities in the private sector, if an employer hires a person with a disability, the Government will provide a wage subsidy of 50 percent of salary up to LKR 15,000 per month for 24 months. The 2026 Budget allocates an additional LKR 500 million for this.

¶ 14 We also propose LKR 5,000 monthly scholarships for low-income schoolchildren with disabilities, and LKR 5,000 for low-income university students with disabilities, to encourage education. We will broaden these programmes in 2026.

¶ 15 For older persons, through the National Secretariat for Elders, we provide hearing aids, spectacles and related support for low-income over-60s; we strengthen elders’ societies and plan to establish day-care and protection centres for senior citizens in every district—860 centres are already initiated—with funding allocated for 2026.

¶ 16 Under the Department of Social Services, we operate 11 vocational training centres for persons with disabilities; in 2025, 496 trainees received vocational education, with support for job placement. In 2026, around 700 trainees will be trained and placed, using the LKR 500 million allocated.

¶ 17 As per the Budget proposals, in partnership with the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs, we started eight model district-level skills and day care centres for children aged six months to 18 years with autism and other disabilities in 2025, and will expand to all districts next year, with an additional LKR 250 million allocated.

¶ 18 On rural development, some in the Opposition misunderstood our programme. Over 80 percent of the poor live in rural areas; without eliminating rural poverty, national development is impossible. Our approach integrates empowerment with social protection, aiming to transform every village into a productive village through an integrated, participatory development model. We have taken the District and Divisional Development Committee model down to the village, appointing a graduate as village secretary and launching “Praja Shakthi”. Coordinating nine Ministries and the Presidential Secretariat, we have allocated an additional LKR 25,000 million in 2026 to eradicate rural poverty.

¶ 19 I thank you, Hon. Chairman.