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Number of senior citizens rising – state official
The number of senior citizens, those above 60 years, has risen to about 18 percent, according to provisional findings of the 2024 Census of Population and Housing, showing an increase from 12.4 percent in the 2012 census, a senior government official said.
“Our preliminary report states that the total population increased to 21.7 million in 2024, while the growth rate declined to 0.5 percent from 0.7 percent in 2021. The ‘feminisation of ageing’ trend for those over 70 years in the 2012 census continued in the 2024 census,” said Dr. W.A. Chandani Wijebandara, Director (Statistics), Department of Census and Statistics.
She was speaking at a discussion titled ‘Elderly issues and the way forward’ organised by the Sunrise Senior Foundation (SSF), a prominent not-for-profit organisation working in the interests of senior citizens, on 21 July in Colombo. The discussion brought together high-level government officials and civil society representatives aimed at charting policy formulation on senior citizens.
Reiterating that in Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka has the fastest ageing population, Ms. Shiranthi Rathnayake, Director-General, Department of National Planning, Ministry of Finance, spoke about giving the maximum benefit of the ‘silver dividend’ to the ‘Silver Economy’ of the elderly.
A social protection policy is being developed not just taking into account the elderly but across the whole lifecycle, she said, explaining that in the social protection strategy the social insurance/security pillar is very important.
Ms. Rathnayake said: “One out of four persons by the year 2040 will fall into the elderly group. We need to consider this Silver Economy and have proper planning for health, life education, geriatric care and labour market development.
A critical area currently under assessment is assistive device technology, she added.
K. Chathura Mihidum, Director, National Secretariat for Elders, said there are 11,500 elder committees at village level of which only 50-60 percent are active. There are 456 elders’ homes of which only 136 are registered.
“Under the new Policy on Elders being drafted now to replace the 2006 policy, we hope to bring in a regulatory framework not only to compel all elders’ homes to register but also for the authorities to monitor them,” he said.
On a different topic, tax expert N.R. Gajendran said that with elders living longer, the retirement age should go up. “I get many calls from senior citizens on the preparation of taxes. One person said when asked to pay taxes on savings, ‘I have already paid taxes all my life on this income’.”
With regard to the proposed property tax to be introduced in 2027, he asked: “What happens to a person who has no income and lives in his own house? How can you tax this person?”
According to him, the purchasing power of elders has dropped and they need to be provided small tax-free allowances, while scrapping the withholding tax for the elderly group only.
It was the matter of price pressures worrying the elderly that economist Dhananath Fernando spoke of.
Even if they get a higher rate of interest on deposits, it means nothing because they are spending more on goods and services, he said, urging the authorities to incentivise private pension schemes.
Fernando also lamented the lack of short-term stay facilities for elders and proposed increasing the retirement age and providing options for the elderly to work on a part-time or flexible basis. Investors should be encouraged to invest in proper elder-care facilities, with a quality regulatory framework similar to day-care centres for children.
Demography expert Prof. Manori Weeratunga said that while the health status and the economic security of elders are the main focus, there is also a need to take into account a sharp increase in the 80 years and over population. Here the gender differences need to be taken into consideration, too.
“The vulnerable groups are mainly elders in the village. We need to empower senior citizens as most of them are in the informal sector,” she said.
Referring to healthy ageing, public health expert Dr. Susie Perera spoke of how elders who need specialised treatment, such as kidney dialysis, often have to seek such treatment in the private sector which they could ill-afford. “We need to re-look at the health policy with regard to the elderly.”
Sociologist Prof. Siri Hettige said elders are under enormous pressure and social protection is the key to looking after them. “We need interim solutions……what can we do now? We are a ‘scattered’ society and as such, we have no social solidarity. Thus we need to make ageing inclusive instead of being a marginalising factor,” he said.
Chaminda de Silva from HelpAge, said his organisation which cares for senior citizens, has a presence in many other countries, too. “While empowering elders’ committees in the villages, we give training on various aspects to senior citizens who are not active and some elders have done well in income generating activities. We also send out mobile medical units,” he said.
Sarvodaya President Dr. Vinya Ariyaratne noted that some segments of the elderly population can manage on their own because of their socio-economic status. But in the villages, it may not be so.
With isolation among the elderly being a “huge” problem, he suggested the setting up of ‘integrated’ community centres involving all, including children.
First comprehensive review of EPF, ETF launched, says Deputy Minister
The Government has launched the first comprehensive review of the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) and Employees’ Trust Fund (ETF) since their establishment, Deputy Minister of Labour Mahinda Jayasinghe told Parliament on Friday.
He said the review was aimed at improving the efficiency of the two retirement benefit schemes and enhancing services provided to millions of members.
Addressing Parliament, Jayasinghe said the Labour Department had already introduced several measures to modernise the administration of the funds, including digitalisation initiatives and improved mechanisms to recover outstanding contributions from defaulting employers.
According to the latest figures, the EPF has 22.9 million registered members and beneficiaries, of whom 3.1 million active accounts receive monthly contributions. The ETF has around three million registered members.
The Deputy Minister said the EPF’s total assets had reached Rs. 4.9 trillion by the end of 2025, while the ETF’s assets stood at Rs. 637.5 billion. He added that there were 101,000 active employers in 2025, including 376 semi-government institutions.
Jayasinghe said no government had undertaken such a systematic review of the two funds since their establishment, with the EPF being introduced in 1958 and the ETF in 1980.
He said the Labour Department had accelerated the recovery of unpaid EPF contributions from private and semi-government institutions, with Rs. 3.4 billion allocated through the 2026 Budget to settle outstanding contributions of semi-government institutions.
He added that steps had also been taken to reactivate stalled court cases and execute pending warrants related to contribution defaults.
The Deputy Minister said a new software system was being developed by integrating the data systems of the Labour Department and the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) to create a unified platform.
He further noted that the Digital EPF facility, launched last December, enables employees to register and access a range of EPF-related services online. These reforms, he said, would eventually allow members to obtain EPF and ETF services through a single-window system.
The Sri Lanka Press Institute (SLPI), and its constituent partners, the Newspaper Society of Sri Lanka (NSSL), The Editors’Guild of Sri Lanka (TEGOSL), the Free Media Movement (FMM), the Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association (SLWJA) together with its affiliated organizations, the Muslim Media Forum (MMF), the Tamil Media Alliance (TMA), The Federation of Media Employees Trade Union (FMETU), the South Asia Free Media Association – SL Chapter (SAFMA) object the proposed Chartered Institute of Media Professionals of Sri Lanka (CIMP) Bill.
“Our primary objection stems from the government-led nature of this initiative. History shows that robust professional bodies, such as the Institute of Engineers and the Sri Lanka Institute of Architects, were founded and drafted by the professionals themselves before being incorporated by Parliament. In contrast, the CIMP is a state-driven project ordered to be published by the Minister of Health and Mass Media despite objections raised by media’s professional bodies.
We view this as an attempt to impose a state-managed regulatory framework upon a profession that must remain independent of government inteference to function effectively,” an SLPI news release said.
“The SLPI, its constituents and affiliated organizations maintain that professional media standards must be self-regulated in principle and led by the media community, not mandated by law under ministerial oversight. The SLPI has presented an alternative mechanism, viz., the Sri Lanka Media Commission (SLMC), based on co-regulatory and self-regulatory principles, which improves professionalism. In addition, the Sri Lanka College of Journalism, which is recognised by the media industry for training journalists for more than two decades, could also be an alternative way of building relevant journalism standards with government financial support if it intends to genuinely promote media professionalism. We call upon the government to withdraw this Bill and engage in a genuine dialogue with stakeholders that respects the autonomy and freedom of the media in a democracy.”
More than Rs. 332 million in public funds has been spent on maintaining Provincial Council chairpersons and their staff despite the dissolution of Provincial Councils, Deputy Minister of Provincial Councils and Local Government Ruwan Senarath told Parliament on Friday.
The Deputy Minister disclosed this in response to a question raised by NPP Gampaha District MP Ruwan Nishantha Mapalagama.
According to Senarath, a total of Rs. 332.9 million had been incurred during the relevant period for the upkeep of Provincial Council chairpersons and their administrative staff, although the respective councils had ceased functioning after completing their terms.
He explained that the expenditure had continued due to provisions in the Constitution and existing legal framework, under which the positions of Provincial Council chairpersons remain valid even after the expiry of the councils’ official terms.
Senarath said the legal provisions governing Provincial Councils had resulted in chairpersons and their staff continuing to receive related facilities despite the councils themselves no longer being operational.
The disclosure came amid concerns over public expenditure incurred on maintaining institutions that remain inactive due to the absence of Provincial Council elections.
Typhoon Noul makes landfall in China, with hundreds of thousands evacuated
Colombo Kaps down Dambulla Sixers by 21 runs
Kandy Royals win by 11 runs
Showers will occur in the Western, Sabaragamuwa and North-western provinces and in Galle, Matara, Kandy and Nuwara-Eliya districts
Govt. launches EPF, ETF shake-up
SLPI concerned over the proposed Chartered Institute of Media Professionals of Sri Lanka
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