President orders housing, urban development projects completion within 2025 Budget timelines

President reviews Urban Development, Construction, and Housing Ministry performance Says projects with 2025 Budget allocations must be completed within year Points to 18 bridge projects in Hambantota abandoned mid-construction to be reassessed Instructs officials to explore bank facilities for citizens without State housing Officials say housing schemes funded by Chinese and Indian loans to be completed this year

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PRESIDENT Anura Kumara Disanayake on Monday instructed the Urban Development, Construction, and Housing Ministry to ensure that projects launched under the 2025 Budget, including housing schemes, bridge construction, and urban development initiatives, are completed within the year, cautioning that unspent allocations and delays have become a recurring problem.

A review of projects implemented under the 2025 Budget allocations for the ministry, together with a pre-Budget discussion for 2026, was held on 25 August at the Presidential Secretariat, the President’s Media Division said.

The review covered housing and urban development, city planning, solid waste management, environmental protection, and water supply and sanitation. Progress across all provinces was examined in detail, with particular focus on projects disrupted by the recent economic crisis and the challenges of sustaining those already underway.