The Ministry of Education has announced a comprehensive review of the School Supplies and Book Grant initiative as part of its broader modernization strategy for the national education system, amid recent media reports questioning the program’s funding and continuation.
The review, which Education Minister Dr. the Honourable Michael Dowlath emphasized is not a discontinuation of support, forms part of the Ministry’s implementation of the Education Strategic Plan 2025-2030, the national framework guiding education reform over the next five years.
Minister Dowlath stressed that the review reflects a “deliberate and evidence-based approach to improving education support systems,” with the goal of ensuring that resources provided to students are sustainable, equitable, and aligned with emerging learning technologies.
“Our responsibility is to ensure that every dollar spent delivers measurable improvement in student learning outcomes,” Minister Dowlath stated. “The decision to review the Book Grant Programme follows a period in which no allocations were made in the annual budget, and the Ministry was required to seek funding through the mid-year process.”
The Minister clarified that the review aims to strengthen the program so that support is “predictable, equitable, and aligned with the Ministry’s broader strategy for modernising learning resources, including AI-supported textbooks.”
The School Supplies and Book Grant initiative was initially introduced as a social support measure to assist students with essential learning materials. During the 2024 cycle, approximately 27,000 applications were received, with 20,000 grants disbursed before the close of the fiscal year.
Minister Dowlath reaffirmed that the goal of the review is not to withdraw assistance but to ensure sustainability, efficiency, and accountability in delivering learning resources to all students at government and government-assisted primary and secondary schools.