Sri Lanka, July 1 -- Cabinet approval stands granted for a programme to provide one pair of shoes each to selected school students, lay and ordained students in pirivenas, and sil mathas for the upcoming 2027 year.

The 2026 programme reached 836,571 school and pirivena students across two different methods.

Plans for the 2027 initiative involve completing the distribution by the end of the third school term of 2026.

Based on the progress of the 2026 implementation, the Cabinet approved the proposal submitted by the Prime Minister in her capacity as the Minister of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education.

This programme will proceed by purchasing shoes directly from local manufacturers for delivery to schools in the Wester...