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| Thursday, 20 January 2005 |
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CDA allocates Rs.11m to boost coir products by Anjana Samarasinghe The Coconut Development Authority (CDA) has allocated Rs. 11 million to develop the coir products manufacturing sector in Sri Lanka this year. Director (Processing Development) of CDA, W.K.N. Shanthichandra told the Daily News that Sri Lanka is the main supplier of the brown fibre to the international market. "We export coir as Bristol fibre and mattress fibre. Our main buyers are Europe, China, Japan and USA," he said. "Through our new development programs we hope to promote the export of coir products in a more aggressive and organised manner. We could gain more benefits if we export value-added products rather than supplying raw fibre materials to the international market. There is a huge demand for geo textiles, coir pads and coir yarn in the European markets especially in Germany," he said. CDA will provide funds for coir products manufacturers and would also help them to find a market for their products. CDA also provides technical assistance to increase their quality and productivity. Under this project the CDA hopes to assist coir millers too. There are nearly 500 coir mills in Sri Lanka and the lack of skilled labour is the major problem that these millers are facing. These mill owners should introduce the latest machinery and technology to increase productivity. With new technology the labour force could be reduced. "We will support coir millers by financing them to buy equipment," he said. Local brown fibre manufacture has been centralised in a few parts of the country and this should be spread to other parts of the country where there is coconut cultivation such as Ratnapura, Kegalle and Embilipitiya. "CDA plans to promote coir manufacturing in the Northeast areas as well. We are hoping to formulate a mechanism to collect their coir products and market them," he said. |
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