GovPay paving the way for Rs. 1 tn revenue in five years
The country’s premier information and communication agency has plans to bring Rs 1 trillion in revenue within the next 4 to 5 years through the GovPay platform, top officials said.
Information and Communication Technology Agency (ICTA) Board Member Harsha Purasinghe said that the long-term ambition is to set audacious goals to take the country forward, contributing an estimated US$3 billion to the economy through government digital payments in the next half a decade.
“We are looking to see how we can, within 12 months, transact Rs. 100 million worth of digital payments monthly, to reach at least Rs. 1 billion. With all government institutions joining in, we can transact Rs. 1 trillion within the next four years. The day we reach Rs. 1 trillion, a value of US$3 billion is added to the digital economy,” he told a media conference where a revamped GovPay.lk website was also unveiled, featuring an improved user interface and real-time dashboards to track the institutional performance and transaction flows.
Digital Economy Deputy Minister Eng. Eranga Weeraratne emphasised the government’s top priority in digitisation, with digital payments at its core. He highlighted the importance of a cashless society, which will bring in efficiency, transparency, and economic empowerment. Digitising government services makes public services more accessible and empowers citizens to participate in the economy, he added, noting that digital payments also help build credit scores, facilitating access to microcredit for startups and MSMEs.
Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya, Chief Adviser to the President on Digital Economy and ICTA Chairperson, underscored the magnitude of GovPay within the Digital Economy Blueprint, which focuses on developing critical infrastructure such as broadband, cloud computing within the digital public infrastructure (DPI).
The primary objective is to establish a cashless and presence-less payment experience for government services. Dr. Wijayasuriya highlighted the importance of increasing the number of institutions participating in GovPay to maximise network effects that will benefit both consumers and the public sector.
Waruna Sri Dhanapala, acting Secretary of the Digital Economy Ministry, noted that the initiative aims to assist Sri Lanka’s bankable population, which accounts for over 80 per cent of citizens, to adopt the digital payments system, while also enhancing financial literacy among the population.
Mr. Purasinghe said that five months ago, fintech apps were introduced to the platform and moving forward, more and more such apps will be introduced.
He also said that cabinet approval was obtained to roll out the traffic fines solution island-wide. Starting this month, in Western Province and Southern Province, it will be affected, and by the year-end end it will be applicable island-wide, he added. It was also noted that many requests have come from citizens who say that it is difficult for them to find the GovPay app.
“We intend to bring GovPay into an app, either standalone or part of the government’s citizen-centric super app,” Mr. Purasinghe said.
ICTA Board Member Sanjaya Karunasena emphasised the importance of citizens uploading identification, licenses, and certifications to the app for government services and digital payments.
Since its launch in February 2025, GovPay has processed 7,024 transactions, generating Rs 65.62 million in government revenue through seamless and secure digital payments. Nearly 700 public services across the onboarded organisations are now digitally payable via the platform, which aims to transform the way citizens interact with the government institutions, Channa de Silva, CEO, Lanka Pay, said.
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