The Hon. Susantha Kumara Nawarathna

¶ 01 Hon. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity.

¶ 02 This Ministry is now one most discussed among the public. Listening to Opposition proposals and criticisms, one feels as if we too governed in the past. Previously, this sector was fragmented across seven ministries. Now we have consolidated them to address real farmer issues scientifically and step by step.

¶ 03 I wish to focus on livestock. For over 2,500 years, animal husbandry has been part of our people’s lives and now has evolved into an industry. Yet there was never a sustained, well-planned approach to make it solve people’s problems.

¶ 04 In 2022 the economy collapsed, yet many engaged in livestock held up their household economies; relatively, livestock livelihoods did not collapse. That is the resilience of this sector.

¶ 05 We recall how past ministers “developed” livestock. One former minister made “milk” a specialty and others, like Vijith Vijithamuni de Soysa, distributed imported cattle at public expense among themselves. The dairy industry was harmed by unsuitable breeds. Our Government will correct this.

¶ 06 Some say we lack policy. We are taking structured, policy-driven decisions. On the wildlife census, we proceeded through a committee including the Environment Ministry, Department of Wildlife Conservation, Forest Department, Agriculture and security agencies. We are not groping in the dark; we have initiated a process under our “A Prosperous Country – A Beautiful Life” programme, laying the foundation for a national policy.

¶ 07 Currently, livestock contributes about 1.4% to GDP; India is near 5%. Around 400,000 dairy households supply only about 45% of national milk needs; the rest we import, draining dollars. We must rebuild dairy. Farmers are scattered; there is the state-owned Milco and many private firms. We will organize farmers into primary societies at village level, federate them at Divisional Secretariat level and nationally, and strengthen support mechanisms.

¶ 08 There has been no profiling of producers by supply levels. We are identifying producers supplying 10, 20, 100 litres, and planning tailored support to scale them up—e.g., moving a 100-litre supply point to 200 litres.

¶ 09 A key constraint is feed. Concentrates are costly; forage lands are lacking. The Government will identify smallholders and provide basic infrastructure—pumps, sprinklers, pipes—so they can establish fodder plots on portions of their land.

¶ 10 Another key issue is the shortage of high-yielding animals. The Central Province contributes significantly but has lacked sustained support. We will expand artificial insemination, import sexed semen, and scale up high-yielding female stock for committed dairy farmers.

¶ 11 The Mahaweli Authority has 17 farms; we will select 10 to develop dairy, poultry and swine clusters. The National Livestock Development Board (NLDB) has 32 farms and 28,802 acres; we will manage these better. We will designate at least one breeding farm per province to supply improved female stock to district farmers.

¶ 12 Extension and knowledge transfer are crucial; we have significant shortages of veterinary surgeons and livestock development instructors. We will prioritize recruitment and capacity.

¶ 13 On poultry: farmers face pressure as production costs have risen; egg and meat margins are thin. We have initiated steps, including MoUs with China for poultry meat exports. We will expand maize cultivation and allocate land to produce feed locally.

¶ 14 On swine: the sector collapsed; we will revive it to meet protein needs and reduce malnutrition.

¶ 15 We invite both Opposition MPs and officials to join us. With concerted effort, we will elevate dairy, poultry, and swine, integrating them into national development and GDP. Thank you.