Verité Research releases State of the Budget 2026 report

Verité Research, Sri Lanka’s largest independent think tank, released the fifth edition of its annual State of the Budget report today (30).

The report provides an independent analysis of Sri Lanka’s 2026 Budget, presented to Parliament by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.

It assesses four key aspects of the Budget:

(1) the assumptions underlying its financial, economic, and fiscal foundations;

(2) the accuracy of the basis and calculation of estimates;

(3) compliance with the Public Financial Management (PFM) Act; and

(4) the adequacy of information and integrity of the numbers presented.

The State of the Budget 2026 report notes a significant improvement compared to previous years. In particular, revenue estimates are assessed to be realistic and reasonable within the existing policy context, marking a departure from past assessments.

However, the report also highlights that several long-standing issues remain unresolved, including inconsistent information, missing estimates, and inadequate disclosure of critical assumptions used in budget preparation.

The full report and related analysis are available on PublicFinance.lk, Verité Research’s one-stop platform for public finance data and insights.

Link is at: https://www.publicfinance.lk/en/report/state-of-budget-2026