Sri Lanka is expected to exit its International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme by the end of 2027, Deputy Minister of Housing, Construction and Water Supply T.B. Sarath has said.
Speaking on the Government’s efforts to improve public sector efficiency, the Deputy Minister said steps had been taken to increase the salaries of state employees after the Government assumed office.
He said the salary revisions were being implemented in phases through allocations made in successive Budgets, with another significant increase of nearly Rs. 10,000 expected to be proposed in the Budget to be presented in November.
According to Sarath, the minimum basic salary of a public sector employee, which had previously been around Rs. 17,000, is expected to rise to more than Rs. 40,000 by next year.
He stressed that easing the financial pressure faced by public servants was essential to ensuring the effective functioning of the public administration.
“When public servants face severe financial stress over their wages, public duties cannot be carried out effectively,” he said.
The Deputy Minister acknowledged that public sector employees would welcome further salary increases, but said the Government had to take into account the country’s current economic capacity when determining the scale of the increases.
He expressed confidence that Sri Lanka would gain greater fiscal flexibility after successfully completing the IMF programme and exiting the framework by the end of 2027, allowing the Government to provide further relief to public sector employees.
