Sri Lanka launches National Integrity Week to strengthen corruption-free public service

National Integrity Week commenced at the Presidential Secretariat today (July 27), aiming to improve the quality, efficiency and transparency of Sri Lanka’s public service and build an exemplary administrative system free from corruption.

The programme, held under the theme “A Culture of Integrity – A Clean Sri Lanka,” was launched under the patronage of Secretary to the President Dr Nandika Sanath Kumanayake and will continue until July 31, 2026.

The National Integrity Pledge was administered at the Presidential Secretariat and all other government institutions at the same time.

The Code of Ethics for officials of the Presidential Secretariat was also presented to Dr Kumanayake by Senior Assistant Secretary to the President and Head of the Internal Affairs Unit Chanaki Ranatunga.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Dr Kumanayake said integrity is not limited to avoiding bribery and corruption. He said it also means doing the right thing according to one’s conscience, even when no one is watching.

He stressed that an official’s integrity is damaged if they fail to perform their duties properly, even if they are not involved in corruption.

However, Dr Kumanayake said it is not the government’s policy to treat public officials as corrupt or as people without integrity. He said National Integrity Week is intended to further strengthen the integrity already present among public officials and their willingness to do what is right.

The initiative aims to create a public service that acts correctly, transparently and ethically, guided by conscience, self-discipline, self-control and self-supervision.

Dr Kumanayake said the spread of bribery and corruption in society creates a major challenge to personal integrity. He therefore called on the public sector, private sector and the general public to become law-abiding citizens with strong moral values.

He said the main objective of the Clean Sri Lanka Programme is to improve the overall quality of society and promote positive values, noting that integrity is closely linked to this goal.

However, he said integrity had not received proper recognition or value in society in recent years. He added that President Anura Kumara Dissanayake aims to rescue society from this deteriorating situation.

Dr Kumanayake said Internal Affairs Units had been established in around 350 government institutions during the past one and a half years.

Irregularities within government institutions can be directly reported to these units, while an online system has also been introduced to monitor their activities.

The Secretary to the President said the government had not waited for society to change on its own. Instead, it had introduced new methods within the state administration and created a path for the public to move towards greater integrity.

He said the government expects to build both a public service and a society with a high level of integrity. He also requested the support of officials at the Presidential Secretariat and across the public service to achieve this objective.

Senior Additional Secretary to the President Kapila Janaka Bandara, Senior Additional Secretary to the President Roshan Gamage, Additional Secretary to the President at the Clean Sri Lanka Secretariat S. P. C. Sugeeshwara, Director General of Legal Affairs at the Presidential Secretariat and Senior Attorney-at-Law J. M. Wijebandara, Senior Additional Secretary Prasanna Chandith and Additional Secretary Chandima Wickramasinghe were among those who attended the event.