Press briefing of Cabinet Decision taken on 2016-06-21

Strengthening of the Co-ordination between the Provincial Councils and the Line Ministries

- At the commencement of the Cabinet Meeting with the participation of the Chief Ministers of Provinces, the difficulties encountered in implementing the activities of Provincial Councils efficiently and effectively were discussed and during the discussion attention was paid to matters such as recruitment of teachers for schools under the Provincial Councils, filling of the vacancies of principals and teachers, the difficulties encountered when obtaining the resources necessary for Provincial Councils and waste disposal management. Emphasis was also laid on the necessity of implementing development projects with a close co-ordination between the Provincial Councils and the Line Ministries.

As per the methodology introduced through the 2016 Budget proposals, the budgetary provisions for the Provincial Councils are allocated through the Expenditure Head of the Ministry of Provincial Councils and Local Government. At the previous Cabinet Meeting held with the participation of the Chief Ministers of Provinces, it had been decided to adopt the methodology previously followed till the end of the year 2015, instead of the new methodology. Accordingly, the Cabinet granted approval to amend the Appropriation Act, No.16 of 2015, to enable the General Treasury to allocate provisions directly to each Provincial Council.