The Hon. (Dr.) Upali Pannilage - Minister of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment
The Minister stated that the Government does not plan to discontinue ongoing programmes or reorganize institutions without purpose. He said Aswesuma benefits will continue through the Welfare Benefits Board, while the Samurdhi Development Department is being redirected toward community empowerment and developed into a microfinance institution for low-income communities. He added that related community empowerment programmes have already begun.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 We do not intend to abolish programmes midstream or reshuffle institutions for its own sake. While Aswesuma benefits are administered via the Welfare Benefits Board, we are re-orienting the Samurdhi Development Department towards robust community empowerment and transforming it into a strong microfinance institution serving low-income communities. We are proceeding accordingly and have already initiated key community empowerment programmes.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Saturday, 8 November 2025 ·No. 22727 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. (Dr.) Upali Pannilage - Minister of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 8 November 2025. No. 22727. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/6450