China to provide free school uniform material for 2026
View(s):The Chinese government has stepped in again to provide free school uniform material for students as a grant. Accordingly, all school uniform material for government and government assisted schools for 2026 will be provided through this grant, Deputy Minister of Education Madhura Senevirathna said.
The Chinese government also supplied the entire quota of 11.817 million metres for uniform material required for 2025, valued at over Rs 5.1 billion.
The government had earlier set aside over Rs 6 billion in the 2026 Budget to provide school uniform material for next year. However, the Chinese Embassy has now responded to a request made through the Treasury’s Department of External Resources in May to provide school uniform material as a grant for 2026.
Accordingly, a total of 4,418,404 school students are to be given free uniform material in 2026. The Chinese government will provide 11.484 million metres of uniform material to fulfil this need. Two vessels carrying the first batches of the uniform material are due at the Colombo Port in the next two weeks.
Deputy Minister Senevirathna said that the Sri Lanka government appreciates the generosity of the Chinese government, particularly at such a challenging time for the country, which is still trying to recover from the Cyclone Ditwah disaster. He pointed out that China’s generosity had freed up more than Rs 6 billion in funds that would otherwise have been spent to procure uniform material.
The government is currently making arrangements to transport the uniform material to schools once they are received. “We will make sure that the material reaches every eligible child, including those in areas deeply affected by the disaster,” he said, adding that the government hopes to complete the distribution of uniform material by the second week of January.
(DWI)
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