The Minister of Industries, Ramesh Pathirana, has stated there is a freeze on new recruitments for public sector jobs in Sri Lanka, except for the most essential areas of public service. 
This decision comes as Minister Pathirana characterized the public service as an "unbearable issue" for the government, citing the country's exceptionally high public employee-to-population ratio.

Minister Pathirana pointed out that Sri Lanka currently boasts one of the world's highest public employee-to-population ratios, with approximately 1.5 million public employees serving a population of 21 million. This equates to roughly one government employee for every 12 citizens, an unusually high figure on the global scale.

"This situation places an enormous 'national burden' on our resources, and we cannot sustain it any further," stated the minister during a press conference. The freeze on public sector recruitments is expected to alleviate this strain on government resources and streamline the public workforce.