CRI Lunuwila's first international coconut training course
The Coconut Research Institute of Sri Lanka held its first- ever International Certificate Course on Coconut Plantation and Management in mid- June at its research headquarters at Lunuwila near Chilaw. This comprehensive eight-week course was organised by the CRI to provide training on scientific coconut planting and management to participants from many coconut-growing countries.
The training was held at the special request of Uron Salum, Executive Director of the Asian and Pacific Coconut Community ( APCC), the apex international body for coconuts.
The APCC, comprising coconut-growing countries in the Asia and Pacific region, identified the CRI as the most suitable institute to provide this international training.
Minister of Plantation Industries Navin Dissanayake was the chief guest at the inauguration, which was attended by many distinguished invitees and also the Executive Director of the APCC. There were 14 participants for the course from countries ranging from Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Samoa, Jamaica, Fiji to Sri Lanka, CRI said in a media release.
This course had a combi- nation of theoretical, practical and on- site fieldwork components. Fieldwork and practicals were conducted in the CRI laboratories and the CRI’s estates and seed gardens. The lectures were delivered almost exclusively by the research staff of the CRI which has more than 30 qualified researchers with doctorates.
“Some of the participants were new to coconut cultivation. However, after completing this course they were able to go back to their countries with a thorough knowledge of coconut plantation management and which, according to them, would be very beneficial to their countries,” the CRI said.
CRI Chairman Jayantha Jayewardene stated that “this course was successful beyond our expectations and I hope that there was some benefit to the larger coconut community as well.”
There were 14 participants for the course from countries ranging from Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Samoa, Jamaica, Fiji to Sri Lanka, CRI said in a media release.