Sri Lanka donates 50,000 metric tons of rice to the World Food Program.
The handing over of the donation of 50,000 metric tons to the World Food Programme fulfills its responsibilities as the country which supplied rice in the ancient past to the world. The presentation of the donation took place at the Presidential Secretariat. President Rajapaksa made a symbolic handover of the consignment of rice to WFP Representative and Country Director Ismail Omer at the Presidential Secretariat today.
Sri Lanka succeeded in achieving a bumper harvest last year following the policies of the Government to grant the fertilizer subsidy, assure a guaranteed price for the produce, cultivate barren land and the granting of concessionary cultivation loans to the farmers.
Sri Lanka has reported its highest paddy production in 2013 with 4.6 million metric tons. Sri Lanka also surpassed the self-sufficiency level in rice. Sri Lanka was making this donation to the WFP in appreciation of the assistance given by WFP in the past to feed displaced people affected by internal conflict, tsunami, and various other natural disasters.
The donation will further solidify Sri Lanka’s links with the UN Agency. WFP is the world’s largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide. Each year, on average, WFP feeds more than 90 million people in more than 70 countries.
Ministers Basil Rajapaksa and Johnston Fernando, Deputy Minister Neomal Perera and many Senior Government officials were present on the occasion.
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