Six out of ten people are at serious risk.
The population of Sri Lanka is 22.16 million. Among them, the majority of 12.3 million have reached the level of economic risk, the United Nations Development Program has stated. This is stated in the report called National Citizen Survey which has been released in relation to the years 2022-23. This information was revealed in the Ways and Means Committee of the Parliament of Sri Lanka, and the report indicated that 6 out of every 10 people in Sri Lanka are at serious risk. As a percentage, the figure is 55.7%. According to the United Nations Development Program, this value is as high as 82% in rural areas. Puttalam district has been identified as the region with the highest risk, and the economic level of risk in that region is 71.8% as a percentage. The lowest value of 41.5% was recorded in Matale district
A committee of Parliament meets suddenly.
The Committee on Ways and Means of the Parliament of Sri Lanka met and discussed this matter in particular. The chairperson of the said committee, Member of Parliament Patali Champika Ranawaka stated that the government’s social welfare program and social safety net should be given special attention. Officials from a number of government agencies including the Department of Social Services, Social Security Board, Welfare Benefits Board, Ministry of Finance were present for this discussion.
Three main factors.
However, according to the report presented by the United Nations Development Program, the 2019 Easter Sunday attack, the 2020 Covid-19 epidemic, the economic crisis in April 2022, the budget deficit, the balance of payments crisis have caused this bad situation. In this situation, the growth rate of Sri Lanka’s GDP in 2022 has dropped to minus 7.8.
The United Nations Development Program has explained the facts regarding this risk situation under three sectors.
- Education and Health,
- Natural calamities,
- Decline in living standards,
12 problems – delaying solutions is serious for the country itself.
According to the current situation, 6 out of 10 people in Sri Lanka are at risk, and the United Nations Development Program has warned that this situation may increase to 8 out of 10 people in another year. Therefore, the Ways and Means Committee of the Parliament of Sri Lanka has recommended that a formal and strong social safety net should be prepared for the vulnerable people.
The United Nations Development Program has identified these needs by considering 12 factors including students’ school attendance, health, water, food, ability to face disasters, adaptability, quality of life, property, unemployment, lack of adequate work, indebtedness. The government should take steps to fulfil it quickly.
