The Hon. Nandana Pathmakumara

¶ 01 Hon. Chairman, thank you for this brief time to speak on the Head of the Ministry of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment.

¶ 02 Seventy-seven years after Independence, our people have endured much. The public knows who governed 76 of those years, and how we reached today’s hardships. Despite past programmes—Samurdhi, Aswesuma, Divi Neguma—poverty persisted. Today, 16.6 percent live in poverty; one in every six among them faces multidimensional poverty; 95.3 percent of the poor live in rural areas. Our Government has prepared comprehensive programmes to change this trajectory across generations—community empowerment, rural development, inclusive social security, and educational institutions for social development.

¶ 03 We have allocated: LKR 2,856.35 million for community empowerment; LKR 5,220 million for rural development; LKR 3,547 million for inclusive social security; LKR 25,000 million for “Praja Shakthi” to transform rural economies and social life; and LKR 151.3 billion for cash transfers to low-income households.

¶ 04 Unlike previous Budgets, this one focuses on every social group, particularly persons with disabilities—allocating LKR 19,000 million for relief, and LKR 1,000 million for accessibility infrastructure. This is an integrated Budget, aligning Ministries to a shared mission of national recovery and poverty eradication from 2025 to 2030.

¶ 05 We also prioritize children in poor families: LKR 3.5 billion for school breakfasts; LKR 6.4 billion for school uniforms; LKR 2.5 billion for footwear for students in difficult schools. We will also address the rapidly aging population, where many elders face insecurity—reports indicate over 25,000 elders sleeping on streets daily, and over 8,800 without family support in homes. Through this Ministry we have allocated substantial funds to ensure safety and dignity for elders and persons with disabilities. Within five years, we are confident of relieving this society from poverty and giving our people a secure and dignified life. Thank you.