The Outreach Committee of the Faculty of Agriculture organized a Workshop on “New Trends of Agriculture Industry in Northern Province of Sri Lanka” in collaboration with the Agriculture sector skills council (ASSC) (Ministry of Education) and its implementing partner DevoPro Guarantee Limited on 26th of June 2023 at the main auditorium of the Faculty of Agriculture, Ariviyal Nagar, Kilinochchi from 8.00 am-5.30 pm. The prime aim of the workshop was to train the undergraduate students of the faculty of agriculture to work closely with the 10,000 Northern farmers to facilitate them to get the free GAP certificates through a project titled GREEN SEAL, therefore, GAP certificate holding farmers can export their products to foreign countries without any issues. The experts on good agricultural practices, value chain and food security were served as the resource persons. Around 120 third and final year students and staff of faculty of Agriculture attended the workshop.
The workshop started with the welcome address delivered by the outreach committee coordinator of the faculty of Agriculture Dr. K. Pakeerathan at 8.30 am. Then Dean Faculty of Agriculture Professor S.Vasantharuba, briefed the outreach and social engagement activities of the faculty. Thereafter, Mr. Thilak Karunarathna, Executive Director DevPro briefed the activities aim of the DevPro company limited in his short speech. The special guest Chief Secretary of Northern province Mr S.M.Saman Bandulasena delivered his detailed speech on expectations of the president of the country and the governor of the northern province from the faculty of agriculture and its undergraduates students contribution to the national and regional plan on agriculture. Then the key resource persons Mr S.M.S. Rochan, Assistant Director, Department of Agriculture, Mrs Nisansala Weerasooriya University of Colombo, Mr Kavinda Dissanayke, Chairman.ASSC, and Mr Riel Griengo, Country Director, Gold Coin Feed Mill conducted Session I: Good Agricultural Practices (GAP); Session II: Value Chain Development; Session III: Food Security and Session IV: Life Experience in Supply Chain, respectively. Resource persons and students actively participated in sumup discussion at the end of every session. At last students skill committee was formed and the committee will be working with farmers closely. The seminar was ended at 5.30 pm with the concluding remarks and presenting certificates to the students who participated.
