The Thai Pongal festival, celebrated annually by the Hindu community in January, embodies the noble values of appreciation and gratitude. This festival serves to express gratitude to nature, particularly to the Sun God, for providing the energy essential for agricultural activities from sowing to harvest.

As creations of nature, we cannot progress without acknowledging its role in our lives. It is a fundamental human quality to be grateful for the blessings we receive from nature. Sri Lanka stands at a critical juncture, with the significant responsibility of steering the nation toward a period of renewal. This requires structural, policy, and attitudinal changes. The government has undertaken this important process and is co MORE >>

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya met with the international leaders of the Salvation Army, General Lyndon Buckingham and Commissioner Bronwyn Buckingham, at the Parliament Complex on January 10.

The Commander of the Salvation Army in Sri Lanka, Colonel Nihal Hettiarachchi, and several other representatives also participated in the event.

Prime Minister’s Media Division MORE >>

The newly appointed Heads of Mission of Sri Lanka met with the Hon. Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya at the Parliament of Sri Lanka to discuss avenues for strengthening diplomatic collaboration.

The discussions focused on expanding trade, tourism, and other key areas of bilateral and multilateral cooperation. Prime Minister Amarasuriya emphasized the importance of enhancing trade relations and exploring new opportunities for Sri Lankan products in global markets. She highlighted the need to establish a stronger presence in emerging markets while promoting greater visibility for local industries to ensure sustainable economic growth.

The Heads of Mission delegation included Ms. R.S. Khan Azard, Ambassador-d MORE >>

The government has highlighted concerns about individuals conducting business in the country while on tourist visas. Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya stated that engaging in business activities on a tourist visa is not legally permitted, and the government will take appropriate legal action against such incidents.

The Prime Minister made these remarks in response to a question raised by an opposition member during the parliamentary session held on January 8.

She elaborated:

"The number of Israeli nationals who visited Sri Lanka last year was 25,514. The Department of Immigration and Emigration’s computer system records their arrivals as Israeli nationals, but it does not classify indiv MORE >>

While responding to a question raised during the parliamentary debate on 08th January regarding the Government’s programme to provide fertilizer subsidy to farmers, Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya stated that the government is providing a fertilizer subsidy of Rs. 25,000 and free red powder fertilizer for the Maha season.

Speaking at the event, the Premier said that, the period for providing fertilizer subsidy to each District is from 1st of October 2024 to 1st of February 2025. The fertilizer subsidy of Rs. 25,000 will be provided in two phases, in instalments of Rs. 15,000 and Rs. 10,000 and the first instalment of Rs. 15,000 has already been provided. “The Government makes every effort to implement an effective s MORE >>

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya said that the Clean Sri Lanka programme is not something that should be implemented by force, but rather it should be based on the will and participation of all.

The Premier made this statement while responding to a question raised by a member of parliament during the parliamentary debate.

The Prime Minister further stated that, the main objectives of the Clean Sri Lanka programme are to set an example, motivate, guide and emphasize the need for change. “We hope to bring about positive changes in Sri Lankan society through this initiative. We strive to integrate and facilitate all efforts made in the country with social, moral and environmental principles to restore Sri L MORE >>

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya stated that steps have been taken to conduct examinations and resume the school term as normal from the beginning of 2026.

The Prime Minister made this statement while responding to a question raised in Parliament on January 8.

Speaking further, Dr. Amarasuriya mentioned,

“I would like to inform the House that the examination schedule conducted by the Sri Lanka Examinations Department is likely to be restored to its previous status from the start of 2026. Due to the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, the economic crisis, social unrest, and transportation difficulties since 2020, the school year was extended. However, plans are in place to conclude t MORE >>

“Prathibhabhisheka” Womens Entrepreneur Awards 2024 was held at the Hilton Colombo on January 7th organized by the Women’s Chamber of Industry and Commerce Sri Lanka . Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya participated as the Chief Guest.

In this ceremony, Dr.Dilesha Perara was awarded as the Womens Entrepreneur of the year 2024.

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya stated that, “Wonderful to see the talent the amazing skills the innovation that you added to our country and to our Industry. It’s lovely to see you all like this. Most important thing is these women leading their businesses as women owned women led operations.

Recent research by the International Labour Orga MORE >>

The Ceremonial Induction of the Sri Lanka Association for the Advancement of Science was held at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo on January 7th. Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya participated as the Chief Guest.

In this ceremony, Prof. Udeni P. Nawagamuwa was appointed as the President for the year 2025 of SLAAS, which is the largest science association in Sri Lanka. Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya stated that,"As Sri Lanka’s foremost scientific body, SLAAS represents a diverse and dynamic community with over 5,000 members spanning various disciplines. SLAAS is a true testament to the richness and breadth of Sri Lanka’s scientific landscape.

SLAAS consistently fosters the growth of science MORE >>

Mr. Shohei Hara, Senior Vice President of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), paid a courtesy call on the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, at the Parliament of Sri Lanka.

During the meeting, Mr. Hara extended JICA’s commitment to supporting the nation’s development priorities. Key areas of discussion included debt restructuring, the completion of the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) expansion project, and potential avenues for enhanced collaboration between the two countries.

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya expressed her appreciation for Japan’s support and reaffirmed the government’s focus on poverty alleviation, digitalization and the "C MORE >>

මෙරට ප්‍රාථමික අධ්‍යාපනය හදාරන දරුවන් වෙනුවෙන් ග්‍රාමීය සංවර්ධනය සඳහා වූ චීන පදනම (CFRD)” සහ අලිබාබා සමාගමේ අනුග්‍රහයෙන් panda pack ව්‍යාපෘතිය යටතේ පාසල් උපකරණ සහිත පාසල් බෑග් 5000 ක් “ජනවාරි 7 වන දින අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය කාර්‍යාලයේ දී ප්‍රදානය කළේය.

ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ චීන තානාපති කී සෙන්හොග් ( Qi Zenhong ) ම� MORE >>

2016 සිට 2020 දක්වා කාලය තුළ ළගම පාසල හොදම පාසල වැඩසටහනෙන් ආරම්භ කර අතරමග නවතා දමා ඇති ව්‍යාපෘති සමා ලෝචනය කර අවසන් කරන බව අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය ආචාර්ය හරිනි අමරසූරිය පැවසුවාය.

ජනවාරි 7 වන දින පාර්ලීමේන්තුවේදී අදහස් දක්වමින් අග්‍රාමාත්‍යවරිය මේ බව සඳහන කළාය.

මෙහිදී වැඩිදුරටත් අදහස් දැ� MORE >>

The Office of the Prime Minister and Minister of Education, Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, categorically denies any involvement in the cancellation of the scheduled lecture organized by the International Youth and Students for Social Equality (IYSSE) at Peradeniya University. Dr. Amarasuriya has consistently championed academic freedom and democratic engagement, values fundamental to fostering critical discourse in educational institutions.

The allegations suggesting that the Prime Minister and Minister of Education influenced the university’s decision to cancel the lecture are entirely baseless and misleading. No directive or instruction was issued from this office regarding the event. The autonomy of academic institutions is a p MORE >>

රාජ්‍ය විශ්වවිද්‍යාල උපකුලපතිවරුන් හා අග්‍රාමාත්‍යවරිය අතර හමුවක් ජනවාරි 04 දින විශ්වවිද්‍යාල ප්‍රතිපාදන කොමිෂන් සභාවේදී පැවැත්විණි.

මෙහිදී විශ්වවිද්‍යාලවල පවතින පරිපාලනමය ගැටලු, අධ්‍යයන සහ අනධ්‍යන කාර්ය මණ්ඩලවල පවතින පුරප්පාඩු, සිසුන්ගේ නේවාසික ගැටලු, ශිෂ්‍යාධාර ගෙවීම� MORE >>

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya presided over a meeting on January 3 at the Ministry of Education to review the progress of initiatives under the World Bank-supported program aimed at modernizing school education in the country.

The meeting focused on the status of projects implemented in recent years to benefit school children and educational institutions. The Prime Minister emphasized the importance of improving hygiene practices and sanitation among school children and enhancing the integration of Information Technology in secondary education curricula.

The meeting was attended by Deputy Minister of Education and Higher Education Dr. Madura Seneviratne, Secretary to the Ministry of Education, Higher Ed MORE >>

A meeting between the Organizing Committee of 77th Independence Day Celebrations and Prime Minister Dr.Harini Amarasuriya, was held on January 2 at Temple Trees.

The discussion focused on the organizational activities for the event, including security arrangements and cultural performances planned for the occasion.

The 77th Independence Day Celebrations will take place on February 4, 2025, at Independence Square, Colombo 07.

The meeting was attended by Ministers Dr. A.H.M.H. Abhayaratne, Professor Anil Jayantha Fernando, and Kumara Jayakody, along with the Prime Minister’s Secretary Pradeep Saputhanthri, and Secretaries Aloka Bandara and Nalaka Kaluwewa. Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuiyakottha an MORE >>

Student Welfare in the University System Requires Urgent Attention - Deputy Minister of Higher Education Dr. Madura Seneviratne

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya emphasized the need for immediate measures to minimize the challenges faced by university students.

The Prime Minister made these remarks during a discussion held on January 2 with officials from the University Grants Commission (UGC), following concerns raised by Deputy Minister of Higher Education Dr. Madura Seneviratne regarding the welfare and education of university students.

Dr. Amarasuriya directed UGC officials to investigate and address vacancies impacting students’ education and highlighted the underutilization of fu MORE >>

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, also the Minister of Education, Higher Education, and Vocational Education, emphasized the importance of establishing a unified education system for all children in the country under a common examination framework. She stated that education is a priority for the government and plays an important role in driving the nation’s progress.

Speaking at a meeting with provincial education heads at Temple Trees on January 2, the Prime Minister outlined the government’s vision for a transformative era. She remarked:

"Education is a very sensitive topic. When implementing such a transformation, we must act with agreement and understanding to avoid potential crises. While  MORE >>