Sri Lanka government schools could fall below 10,000 this year as mergers increase and candidate numbers decline across national examinations.
Sri Lanka government schools could fall below 10,000 this year, with Ministry of Education and Higher Education data indicating a decline of about 100 schools compared with last year.
Sri Lanka recorded 10,047 government schools last year. However, data received so far by the Ministry from the respective provinces puts this year’s total below 10,000, Ministry sources said. In 2024, the country had 10,076 schools.
Sri Lanka Government Schools Decline as Mergers Continue
The programme to merge schools with smaller student populations into other schools has contributed to the decline. Ministry sources said officials have so far identified about 300 schools that could be merged under the programme.
Meanwhile, the number of candidates who sat for this year’s Grade Five Scholarship Examination has fallen by 13,804 compared with last year. Last year, 333,647 candidates sat for the examination, while 298,867 candidates sat this year.
The students in this year’s group entered Grade One in 2022. In that year, 292,517 students gained admission to Grade One. Accordingly, the reported figures show a difference of 2,650 when compared with the number who later sat for the Scholarship Examination.
The figures also show a longer-term change in candidate numbers. In 2021, 335,158 candidates sat for the Grade Five Scholarship Examination.
The decline is not limited to the Scholarship Examination. Reports from the Department of Examinations also indicate that the number of candidates sitting for the G.C.E. Advanced Level and Ordinary Level examinations has been decreasing year by year.
The latest figures therefore point to a continuing contraction in both Sri Lanka’s government school network and the number of students sitting major national examinations.
