July 21, Colombo (LNW): President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has begun a fresh round of pre-budget consultations, with discussions on the Ministry of Women and Child Affairs taking centre stage during a meeting held at the Presidential Secretariat on Monday.
The meeting focused on assessing the progress of programmes funded under the 2026 Budget while identifying funding priorities and policy initiatives for inclusion in the 2027 national Budget. Senior officials presented updates on both recurrent and capital expenditure across several key institutions operating under the ministry.
Among the agencies that reported on their progress were the Sri Lanka Women’s Bureau, the National Commission on Women, the National Secretariat for Early Childhood Development, the Department of Probation and Child Care Services and the National Child Protection Authority. The review also examined the implementation of ongoing welfare and development projects aimed at improving the wellbeing of women and children.
President Dissanayake paid particular attention to several flagship programmes, including support for institutional child care and guardianship, financial assistance for street children, nutritional allowances for expectant mothers, the preschool morning meal programme and the ‘Guru Abhimani’ monthly allowance for preschool teachers.
During the discussions, the President stressed that the nutritional assistance provided to pregnant mothers must be closely monitored to ensure it is used for its intended purpose of improving maternal health and nutrition, rather than functioning as a general cash benefit. He called for stronger oversight and accountability in the implementation of the scheme.
The meeting also reviewed the progress of the monthly allowance programme introduced for children orphaned by Cyclone Ditwah. The President instructed officials to expedite the distribution of financial assistance so that affected children receive support without unnecessary delays.
Attention was also given to child protection initiatives led by the National Child Protection Authority, particularly programmes aimed at identifying children at risk and providing timely intervention. Emphasising the importance of evidence-based policymaking, the President said future budget allocations for 2027 would be guided by reliable and comprehensive data, underscoring the need to strengthen data collection and monitoring systems across the sector.
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