Sri Lanka’s ComBank to take advanced agriculture to farmers, village by village
Daily FT: The Commercial Bank of Ceylon has embarked on an ambitious mission to propagate technology in the agriculture sector, encompassing all areas of agricultural potential in the country.
This initiative aims at empowering farmer communities and improving the quality and volume of crop yields by fostering sustainable agriculture practices and equipping rural communities with the latest resources and knowledge in modern farming.
The first village to be “adopted” under the pilot project of the program was Mahilankadu in Kilinochchi, in collaboration with the University of Jaffna and the Department of Agriculture in Kilinochchi.
This first “Agri Modernisation Village” was recently introduced to transplanting paddy seedlings using mechanised technology as the first demonstration of the program. The event saw the participation of farmers, members of the local farmers’ organisation, and officials and experts from the Kilinochchi area.
This programme on transplanting paddy seedlings using mechanised technology was held in Mahilankadu village and was attended by a large number of local farmers organisations and officials of institutions connected with agriculture promotion.
Commenting on the initiative, Commercial Bank’s Deputy General Manager – Personal Banking Delakshan Hettiarachchi said: “This transformative initiative of the Development Credit Department of Commercial Bank for rural communities is designed to bridge the gap between traditional farming methods and innovative technologies. We believe this can revolutionise the agriculture sector, and stimulate the next generation to embrace smart agricultural practices.”
The different elements to be addressed by the ‘Agri Modernisation Village’ programme include access to advanced techniques such as transplanting, sustainable irrigation, and climate-resilient crop varieties that lead to increased productivity and profitability; skills development and training; financial inclusion and access to credit via direct engagement with the Bank; improved livelihoods though better yields and access to new markets; sustainable practices that ensure the long-term viability of farmer lands; and community support and networking.
Additionally, the collaboration with academic and agricultural institutions required to implement the program fosters a valuable knowledge-sharing environment, the Bank said.
Commercial Bank is the biggest lender overall to Sri Lanka’s small and medium enterprises (SME) sector and the second biggest lender to the country’s agriculture sector. In 2023, the Bank lent Rs 231.655 billion out of the total loans of Rs 704.142 billion to SMEs, accounting for 32.89% of the total in value terms.
OSL take:
The ongoing economic activities and the overall economic expansion in Sri Lanka has increased the demand in the country’s agriculture industry. The expansion in the agriculture industry covers two key areas – consumption crop cultivation and export crop cultivation. Both these sectors have shown a great expansion in the past few years. The expansion programmes undertaken by businesses in the local agriculture industry and the interest shown by foreign businesses to enter Sri Lanka’s agriculture industry, are indicative of the overall expansion in industry and the creation of many new business/investment opportunities. The increasing need for new agricultural methods and high yielding seed varieties as well as the exports sector’s commitment to value add and diversify the existing export crop product lists, there’s an increase in the business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s agriculture industry and related sectors. With the increasing business potential in the local agriculture industry and related sectors, foreign businesses/investors could confidently explore the opportunities in the industry while also looking at forming collaborations with local businesses to further expand operations locally and internationally. Sri Lanka also presents the best destination for foreign businesses to set up bases in order to engage with other countries in the region using the strong trade ties enjoyed by Sri Lanka with these countries.
Article Code : | VBS/AT/20241210/Z_3 |