Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya stated in Parliament today (05) that the coconut shortage has arisen due to the fact that no government has had a proper policy to develop coconut cultivation.
The Prime Minister stated that the current government is formulating a proper policy to develop coconut cultivation and that several short-term programmes are being followed in this regard.
She also stated that it has been decided to allocate more money to develop coconut cultivation from this year’s budget.
The Prime Minister further pointed out that the institutions related to coconut cultivation under the Ministry of Plantations and Community Infrastructure are taking measures such as conducting tests for high coconut yields, identifying agricultural practices and coconut varieties with high harvest potential to increase local coconut production, providing necessary technical advice and recommendations to control diseases and pests in coconut cultivation, and submitting necessary policy proposals for the coconut sector in order to prevent a shortage of coconuts in the future.
