Tea industry needs to help themselves, says Minister
Future state involvement in resurrecting the tea industry should be at a minimum, Plantations Minister Navin Dissanayaka said on Thursday.
During an interview with the Business Times, the minister queried why the government should intervene every time the tea industry is down and explained that there should be a revolving fund to finance them when required.
He pointed out that the industry needed to foresee such crises in the future and establish a revolving fund to be used at such times to assist them to get back up.
“They have to evolve a mechanism to weather the storm,” Minister Dissanayaka said adding that they were also looking at whether it would be beneficial or not to keep the cess fund within the Sri Lanka Tea Board (SLTB).
Currently, the Treasury was taking the cess on a needs basis and in looking at the numbers the ministry would consider whether to allow the SLTB to retain this fund.
Speaking about the rubber industry, he pointed out that there would be more liberalization of the regulations in a bid to boost the sector and ensure they increase on value addition as a policy.
In expanding into other crops, the minister pointed out that if the demand and supply were met by the production of palm oil in the country it would be encouraged. Mr. Dissanayaka said that the introduction of this sector and should it have an economic value it could be given a boost.
While asserting cautiousness the minister pointed out that a policy decision needed to be taken on this to create a framework.
If the private sector was willing to work in partnership with the ministry on the production of palm oil in the country, the minister noted he “shouldn’t strangulate their progress.”
Meanwhile, in the coconut industry, he noted that with about 73 virgin oil factories being set up there were 137 applications submitted to commence new factories.
This was creating value addition to the local exports that needed encouragement, Minister Dissanayaka said.