Cabinet approves recruitment of 8,547 personnel across ministries and provincial councils

Wednesday, 29 October 2025 03:55 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs Ministry accounts for largest number of new recruitments with 5,198 positions, followed by Buddhism, Religious and Cultural Affairs Ministry with 1,261 vacancies

The Cabinet of Ministers on Monday approved filling 8,547 vacancies across various ministries and provincial councils, following recommendations made by a high-level committee headed by the Secretary to the Prime Minister.

“The decision follows the mandate given by the Cabinet on 30 December 2024 to appoint a committee to review and rationalise State sector recruitment, ensuring that new appointments align with institutional needs, national priorities and defined timeframes,” Acting Cabinet Spokesman and Minister Vijitha Herath said at the weekly post-Cabinet meeting media briefing yesterday.

At its meeting held on 2 October 2025, the committee reviewed requests submitted by individual ministries and State institutions for essential recruitments. Based on these evaluations, the Cabinet approved a proposal submitted by Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya to authorise the respective departments and institutions under each ministry to proceed with filling the identified vacancies.

According to the approved list, the Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs Ministry accounts for the largest number of new recruitments, with 5,198 positions, primarily to strengthen national security operations and administrative functions.

Other ministries receiving significant allocations include the Buddhism, Religious, and Cultural Affairs Ministry with 1,261 vacancies, the Youth Affairs and Sports Ministry with 355, the Finance, Planning, and Economic Development Ministry with 310, and the Agriculture, Livestock, Land, and Irrigation Ministry with 123.

Recruitments will also be made across other key sectors, including Health and Mass Media (120), Education and Higher Education (79), Transport and Urban Development (48), Foreign Affairs and Tourism (54), and Plantation and Community Infrastructure (213).

In addition, several provincial councils have been approved to proceed with their recruitments, including the Western Provincial Council (414 positions), Northern Provincial Council (115), and North Central Provincial Council (89).

He said the initiative is part of the Government’s broader effort to improve service delivery, address critical human resource gaps and enhance the operational efficiency of the public sector, while ensuring recruitment decisions are made in line with current fiscal and administrative priorities.