The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the recruitment of 15,839 vacancies across ministries and provincial councils, following recommendations made by a committee appointed under the leadership of the Secretary to the Prime Minister to review the public service recruitment process.
The committee, established with Cabinet approval on 30 December 2024, was tasked with identifying needs, priorities, and timelines for essential recruitments.
Requests submitted by ministries to fill vacancies in departments and institutions under their purview were reviewed at the committee meeting held on 12 February 2026.
Based on its recommendations, Cabinet approval was granted for the following recruitments:
- Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education – 300
- Ministry of Justice and National Integration – 67
- Ministry of Defence – 9,794
- Ministry of Industries and Enterprise Development – 112
- Ministry of Transport, Highways and Urban Development – 121
- Ministry of Buddhist Affairs, Religious and Cultural Affairs – 02
- Ministry of Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs – 1,915
- Ministry of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government – 66
- Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Lands and Irrigation – 60
- Ministry of Health and Mass Media – 776
- Ministry of Science and Technology – 201
- Ministry of Finance, Economic Stabilization and Development – 214
- Ministry of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment – 15
- Ministry of Environment – 213
- Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports – 06
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism – 03
- Ministry of Labour – 01
- Ministry of Plantations and Community Infrastructure – 09
- Ministry of Ports and Civil Aviation – 339
- Ministry of Power and Energy – 01
- Ministry of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development – 50
- Ministry of Housing, Construction and Water Supply – 10
- Central Provincial Council – 22
- Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council – 236
- Wayamba Provincial Council – 401
- North Central Provincial Council – 66
- Eastern Provincial Council – 282
- Uva Provincial Council – 146
- Northern Provincial Council – 411
This large‑scale recruitment drive is expected to strengthen staffing across critical ministries and provincial administrations, addressing long‑standing vacancies in the public service. (Newswire)