SL Disaster Relief: Radical Shift Towards Transparency & Accountability 📈

The government's response to the 2025 Cyclone Ditwah disaster relief marks a radical departure from the 2004 Tsunami era, prioritizing discipline, integrity, and public trust. • Tsunami 2004 Governance Failure: The past was marred by fragmentation, absence of a centralized mechanism, politicization of aid distribution, and misappropriation of hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of aid (Auditor General’s findings). Funds often bypassed the Central Bank, weakening economic stability. • Current Accountable System (2025): The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development (MOFED) and the President’s Media Division (PMD) issued clear, published instructions on Nov 29, 2025. • Key Mechanism: All domestic and international contributions must be routed through designated Central Bank accounts. • Strategic Benefits: This centralized system ensures full transparency, sets out clear auditing and oversight requirements, and strategically strengthens Sri Lanka’s foreign reserve position during the emergency. • Goal: The new framework aims for a response that is audited, traceable, serves citizens equally, and functions above party politics, rebuilding the public trust lost two decades ago. • Donor Note: All donors must strictly follow MOFED/PMD guidelines to ensure funds reach the intended beneficiaries and uphold credibility.