Nine percent growth expected in agricultural sector

The Government has planned to achieve a nine percent growth in the agricultural development sector this year compared to the 7.5 percent achieved last year, said Agricultural Development and Agrarian Services Development Minister Maithripala Sirisena.

The Minister was addressing the Ministry staff at the 'Govi Jana Mandira' auditorium to mark the launching of Ministry programs for the New Year.

The Minister said the contribution made by the agriculture sector to the country's overall economic development was 13.5 percent.

The world food crisis would aggravate and funding for agricultural development would be limited by 2011 according to a warning by to the World Food and Agriculture Conference held in Bangkok, Thailand recently.

Sri Lanka's 'Api Wawamu-Rata Nagamu' agricultural drive launched under the guidance of President Mahinda Rajapaksa also came into appraisal at this conference.

Sirisena said, 'we ought to fuhrer strengthen our agricultural development drive taking the warning issued at the Bangkok Conference into cognizance," He said the country had been able to eliminate cruel LTTE terrorism due to the brave and farsighted leadership of President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Concurrently it was the duty and responsibility of all to strengthen the country's economy by increasing food production.

The Minister who thanked the staff of his ministry and affiliated institutions and the media for the assistance rendered to the ministry in achieving productivity targets directed officials to overcome inefficiency in certain areas by obtaining the continued assistance of all staff.

The Minister who noted that an officer due to retire in thee months had been sent for a seminar abroad by the agriculture department said officials should prevent the recurrence of such irregularities.

He said all departments and institutions should have a close rapport without trying to working in water tight compartments.

The Minister who described the Mealy bug menace and the water scarcity as the major challenges before the agriculture sector directed ministry Secretary J. Ranjith Wijetilleke to re-orient the progress review programs of the Ministry and related institutions to make them more systematic.