Financial assistance for children of families affected by incidents of elephant intrusions into their villages

The Board of Governors of the President’s Fund convened under the leadership of President Anura Kumara Disanayake, has decided to provide financial assistance as an encouragement to ensure the uninterrupted education of children from families affected by daily incidents of elephant intrusions into their villages.

Priority will be given to families who have lost a member or have individuals injured due to elephant intrusions.

Additionally, children from families that have suffered property or crop damages as a result of such incidents will also be eligible to apply for this assistance.

Eligibility for this financial assistance will be determined based on the observations of the respective Divisional Secretaries.

Families must have children pursuing education from Grade 1 up to the G.C.E. Ordinary Level or Advanced Level to qualify.

The support will be extended to families affected by elephant intrusions on or after Jan. 1, 2025.

However, children who are already beneficiaries of the G.C.E. Advanced Level scholarship program currently implemented under the President’s Fund will not be eligible for this assistance.

Under this initiative, selected students from Grade 1 to Grade 11 will receive a monthly allowance of LKR 3,000 for a maximum period of 12 months, while selected students in Grades 12 and 13 will receive LKR 5,000 per month for the same duration.

The financial assistance is expected to be disbursed starting from April 1, 2025.

Accordingly, all Divisional Secretaries have been informed to collect details of eligible children within their divisions, conduct personal assessments and submit the relevant applications, along with their recommendations, to the Secretary of the President’s Fund without delay.