CCC-Citi ‘Rural Economic Empowerment Program’ to boost productivity improvement training for cinnamo

The ‘Rural Economic Empowerment Program’, a joint effort between Citi Bank, the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce andNDB Bank, aimed at nurturing prospective rural entrepreneurs, recently conducted a technical training program for cinnamon growers in Dadayamkanda village in Embiliptiya, in the district of Ratnapura.

This program focused on introducing productivity based technical training for the cinnamon growers in and around Dadayamkanda village. The training was conducted by resource persons from the Ratnapura District Office of the Department of Export Agriculture. 

The programused aparticipatory approach to encourage the exchange of ideas and sharing of experiences of the cinnamon growers, majority of whom have been engaged in the trade for more than 15 years.

Further, the training focused on two main themes: productivity improvement of cinnamon cultivation; and motivating the existing farmers to become entrepreneurs. During the program, farmers were given field demonstrations, awareness on good cultivation practices and yield management techniques. 

It was evident that the 34 cinnamon growers, who took part in the training program are not adopting good cultivation practices, thus dropping yield levels to just 150 kg-200 kg of cinnamon per year, while the efficient growers in the Southern Province are reaching a productivity level of 600 kg per year. 

The training program was designed and conducted following a needs assessment survey conducted with the farmersThe participantshighly appreciated the knowledge and experience gained through the training programand expressed their interest in making use of the new cultivation practices to improve productivity of their cultivation.