The Small Scale Agri-Entrepreneurship participation Program (SAPP) has taken steps to allocate an amount of Rs.04 billion for maize cultivation in 2024 yala season.
The project spent Rs.10 billion to cultivate 40,000 acres of maize in the 2023 Maha season. Accordingly, steps were taken to provide all the necessary financial allocations for maize cultivation, maize seeds, fertilizers and land preparation cost to the farmers on a non-recovery basis.
Accordingly, took steps to provide these facilities to the farmers of Anuradhapura, Hambantota, Badulla, Ampara and Monaragala districts for growing maize.
In the same way, the Minister of Agriculture and Plantation Industries, Mahinda Amaraweera, instructed the Small scale Agri entrepreneurship Participation Program to provide necessary concessions to the farmers for the cultivation of maize in the yala season.
The Minister observed the cultivation of maize in the Kasagala area. 5000 acres of maize was cultivated in Hambantota district during the last Maha season on the basis of concessions provided by the Small Scale Agri-Entrepreneurship Program (SAPP).
The minister observed that despite reports of the epidemic situation of Fall armyworm in many areas related to maize cultivation, maize cultivation is being done very successfully in Kasagala area.
Meanwhile, last maha season, 80,000 acres of maize have been planted throughout the island, and the Department of Agriculture says that a harvest of 350,000 metric tons of maize is expected.
But the crop leader who deals with maize also mentions that the growth of maize plants has been affected due to heavy rains and lack of sunshine in the past four months.
