By Maheesha Mudugamuwa
Coconut Development and Janatha Estate Development Ministry has launched a five-year development plan to promote and increase coconut production in the country under the five-year development plan.
The ministry spokesman said that the aim of this plan is to increase coconut production to 3,650 million nuts by 2016.
The government will provide every possible support to upgrade the coconut industry and encourage local farmers to grow more coconut trees as the population increases, he said.
"Annual coconut production which is estimated at between 2,400 million and 2,700 million nuts at present will be increased to 3,650 million nuts by 2016" he added.
In addition, the Government will take immediate steps to expand the land area under coconut plantation by another 20,000 hectares by the end of the year 2011.
The country annually requires 3,500 million coconuts for local consumption and coconut based products for export.
"The ministry is currently implementing several programmes to increase production to 4,000 million nuts by 2020 to meet the total demand of the domestic and export sectors," the spokesman said.
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