COLOMBO, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) -- President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has instructed officials of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation to establish a comprehensive sector-wide data system on state-owned land, the President's Media Division (PMD) said in a statement on Monday.

The president was meeting officials to review projects implemented under the 2025 budget allocations and to discuss pre-budget proposals for 2026, the PMD said.

Dissanayake instructed officials to focus on initiatives that would enable agriculture, livestock, land, and irrigation to make a stronger contribution to economic growth, as these areas are integral to the government's strategy to eradicate rural poverty and integrate rural communities into the broader economy.

According to Sri Lanka's Department of Census and Statistics, in the third quarter of 2024, the agriculture sector employed an estimated 26.4 percent of the total employed population. ■