Agri sector grew by 4.3% in Q3, 2020

Sri Lanka’s agricultural sector grew by 4.3 per cent in the third quarter of 2020, compared to the same quarter in the previous year (2019), the Ministry of Finance revealed in a statement released yesterday.

The Statement read: “The normalisation of people’s lives after the first wave of the COVID epidemic has positively contributed to this growth. These facts have been issued according to the macroeconomics including GDP for Sri Lanka and index product approach at existing and fixed prices estimated for the period of 1 July to 30 September 2020.

The growth acquired by the cultivations of paddy, grain, vegetables, rubber, fruits, spices, and the animal production and freshwater fishing during this period has led to this advancement.

Accordingly, cultivation of grain has acquired 256.65 per cent growth in the third quarter of 2020 when compared with the same quarter of the previous year.

Freshwater fishing has increased by 20.6 per cent during this quarter. Paddy cultivation has also acquired a considerable growth of 15.5 per cent. Further vegetable, rubber, fruits, spice cultivation and animal production has acquired a growth of 11.6 per cent, 11.5 per cent, 8.3 per cent, six per cent and 2.8 per cent respectively.

However, sea fishing has decreased by 11.6 per cent due to a certain effect of COVID 19.

Moreover oil-based fruit cultivation, including coconut cultivation, has faced a drop. The economic growth rate during the third quarter of 2020 has been estimated as 1.5 per cent.”

(AC)