Source: The post is based on the article “Sri Lanka turns to India for help to boost dairy production” published in Indian Express on 6th December 2022
What is the News?
Sri Lanka has sought technical assistance from India’s National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) and market leader Amul to boost dairy production.
Why has Sri Lanka sought assistance from NDDB to boost dairy production?
Currently, Sri Lanka’s domestic dairy production meets less than half of its requirements.
The dollar-strapped Sri Lanka spends about $300 million annually on dairy imports, mostly from New Zealand.
As the country’s economy crashed earlier this year, leading to severe shortages, milk products were unavailable to most.
Hence, that’s why Sri Lanka has sought assistance from NDDB to boost dairy production.
What is the significance of this partnership between India and Sri Lanka on dairy production?
This partnership on dairy production is not new between India and Sri Lanka.
In the late 1990s, Sri Lanka had invited India’s “milk man” Verghese Kurien to set up the ‘Kiriya’ dairy project, named after the Sinhala word for milk.
A $20 million joint venture between the NDDB and Sri Lanka’s MILCO was announced but the project did not take off in the wake of resistance from nationalist worker unions and powerful business lobbies in Sri Lanka.
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