Citizens across nine districts in Sri Lanka, in a unique initiative, have submitted proposals to the President for inclusion in the 2013 budget to be presented next week, according to the Active Citizenship for Development Network (ACDN). The group, which organized participants from the nine districts, said the recommendations cover four sectors of particular concern [...]

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Lankan citizens submit budget proposals in unique initiative

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Citizens across nine districts in Sri Lanka, in a unique initiative, have submitted proposals to the President for inclusion in the 2013 budget to be presented next week, according to the Active Citizenship for Development Network (ACDN).

The group, which organized participants from the nine districts, said the recommendations cover four sectors of particular concern to these citizens groups and their larger community, that is, agriculture; fisheries; estates; and state education. In the past, often only budget proposals from focused groups like chambers and business associations are heard by the Treasury and their proposals considered.

“The problems faced by these groups range from the impact of drought on crops and low farm-gate prices for their produce; to the high cost of diesel and kerosene, sea-grabbing for tourism projects and poaching by Indian trawlers; to the poor housing, education and social infrastructure on estates and their landlessness; and finally, the woeful underinvestment in state education from pre-school through to tertiary-level,” it said.

ACDN member organizations – the Centre for Society and Religion (CSR), the Law & Society Trust (LST), the National Fisheries Solidarity Movement (NAFSO), and the Uva Community Development Centre (UCDC) – took up these issues in the formulation of the following proposals:

Agriculture – organic fertiliser to be promoted through transferring at least Rs10 billion in subsidies on chemical fertilizers; social security for farmers and their families through resourcing the Farmers Pension and Benefits Scheme.

Fisheries – diesel subsidy of at least 25 per cent and kerosene subsidy of at least 30 per cent for fisher-folk to offset cost-of-living increases; and a 25 per cent increase in stocking fingerlings to sustain and promote freshwater fishing.

Plantations – seven perches of land to be allocated to each estate household as promised prior to privatisation of plantations; and the 37,000 hectares of unutilised estate lands to be distributed to estate residents for own cultivation.

Education -increase availability of advanced-level education in at least 238 more rural and estate schools, through an immediate 10 per cent increase in allocation, within the medium-term framework of allocating 6 per cent of GDP for education.




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