According to the Appropriation Bill for 2026, the government’s estimated total expenditure has increased by Rs. 3 billion compared to the current year. The bill, gazetted ahead of the annual budget debate, will be presented to Parliament for its first reading on September 26.
The estimated government expenditure for 2025, initially set at Rs. 4,218.24 billion, has now been revised to Rs. 4,545.64 billion in the 2026 bill. However, the borrowing limit has been reduced from Rs. 4,000 billion in 2025 to Rs. 3,800 billion in 2026.
A notable shift is seen in the President’s capital expenditure for development activities, which has surged from Rs. 100 million in 2025 to Rs. 8 billion in 2026, while recurrent expenditure remains steady at Rs. 200 million. Operational recurrent spending has slightly declined from Rs. 2.5 billion in 2025 to Rs. 2.4 billion in 2026.
The Prime Minister’s Office has also seen a reduction in recurrent expenditure, dropping from Rs. 1 billion in 2025 to Rs. 898 million in 2026.
For the Ministry of Defense, capital expenditure remains unchanged at Rs. 60 billion across both years, while recurrent expenditure has increased from Rs. 382 billion in 2025 to Rs. 395 billion in 2026.
The Ministry of Health and Mass Media has recorded declines in both allocations: recurrent expenditure decreased from Rs. 449 billion in 2025 to Rs. 412 billion in 2026, while capital expenditure dropped from Rs. 105 billion to Rs. 95 billion.
The Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Training saw its recurrent expenditure rise from Rs. 206 billion in 2025 to Rs. 231 billion in 2026, while capital expenditure increased from Rs. 65 billion to Rs. 70 billion.
Expenditure under the Ministry of Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs also rose, with recurrent allocations climbing from Rs. 159 billion to Rs. 175 billion, and capital allocations from Rs. 16 billion to Rs. 18 billion.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation recorded higher recurrent expenditure, up from Rs. 52 billion in 2025 to Rs. 56 billion in 2026. However, capital expenditure has fallen from Rs. 421 billion to Rs. 390 billion.
