The government’s objective is to see education recognised as a fundamental right of every child rather than a privilege, Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya said at a scholarship award ceremony at Temple Trees on Sunday.
Speaking at the “Nena Isura – 2026” ceremony, the Prime Minister said every child should have access to quality education regardless of their background or where they live.
She said the Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education is working to widen opportunities and build pathways so that students can move on to higher education or vocational training after completing school.
460 scholarships awarded
A total of 460 students who passed the Grade Five Scholarship Examination received awards at the event. The programme is designed to provide continuing financial support to each recipient until they complete their G.C.E. Advanced Level education, rather than as a one-off payment.
The ceremony was held in memory of the late Most Venerable Galboda Siri Gnanissara Thera and organised by the Galboda Siri Gnanissara Thera Memorial Scholarship Trust Fund, under the guidance of the Chief Incumbent of Gangaramaya Temple, Venerable Dr. Kirinde Assaji Thera.
The Grade Five Scholarship Examination is the main route by which students from under-resourced schools transfer to better-equipped national schools, and it remains one of the most competitive points in the Sri Lankan school system. Tuition classes and seminars for this year’s candidates are banned from midnight on August 5 under Education Ministry rules that apply ahead of the exam.
