Sri Lanka should modernise agro sector to reap more economic benefits for both farmers and lower prices for consumers said State Minister of Technology, Kanaka Herath at the launch of “Govi Lab” Agri Tech Accelerator launched jointly by Sarvodaya – a leading grassroots organization, in collaboration with Hatch Works.
“The time has come to modernize the transformation of this sector with technology. The Inclusive Digital Agriculture Transformation is the national strategy to achieve this. Agriculture has been the backbone of the Sri Lankan community for generations and nearly 30% of the population engaged in agriculture activities.
But as we know, the contribution to the national GDP is less than 10%. So there is a significant gap. Over 40% of the produce is wasted due to wildlife encounters and transportation into multiple handoffs. Due to this end consumer price is almost four to five times. Two key points to note here today is by introducing ways to reduce waste and add value it will contribute directly to GDP. The farmers and the end customer will get better pricing.”
This initiative is an integral component of Sri Lanka’s Inclusive Digital Agriculture Transformation (IDAT) strategy, generated by the collaborative efforts of the Government of Sri Lanka along with Bill and Melinda Gates foundation supported by PwC India.
The primary objective of the Govi Lab AgriTechAccelarator is to uplift Sri Lanka’s agriculture industry by a holistic approach. The first phase of the program will involve stakeholder consultations and focus group discussion to identify specific challenges faced by smallholder farmers and how these converge with government priorities.
“The GoviLab Accelerator aligns with our focused vertical for AgriTech and Sustainable Innovation – Hatch Green. We are hoping to identify and accelerate technologies that are capable of solving challenges of smallholder farmers across Sri Lanka to empower them and bring disruptive Innovation to the Agriculture sector,” said Mevan Peiris, Chief Program Officer, Hatch.
President of Sarvodaya, Dr. Vinya Ariyaratne said, “Sarvodaya has been working for more than six and a half decades in Sri Lanka with rural communities and this collaboration with Hatch is a groundbreaking initiative because we believe that we can really have a impact on the ground delivering effective solutions and accelerative development of our country’s agriculture sector.”
The first cohort of the “GoviLab” AgriTech Accelerator will select 10 startups through a competitive application process. Over a 6-month acceleration period, selected startups will undergo a comprehensive scale-up process, complemented by a capacity-building grant.
The application process is now open and interested startups can submit their proposals for consideration via [email protected]
THUSHAN JAYASURIYA