The Agricultural Enterprise Framework, Data Sharing Policy, and the CROPIX National Digital Platform, designed to modernize Sri Lanka’s agricultural sector, were officially launched yesterday at the Cinnamon Grand, Colombo.
This initiative, organized by the Ministry of Agriculture and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) with financial support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, provides a strong foundation for evidence-based decision-making by modernizing the country’s agricultural governance system.
This digital public infrastructure (DPI), developed by integrating fragmented data systems, is expected to remove existing bottlenecks in the sector by enabling efficient data sharing among government institutions. Speaking at the event, Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation, Hon. K.D. Lalkantha, emphasized that this marks a decisive turning point in Sri Lanka’s agricultural governance.
Hon. Deputy Minister of Digital Economy, Eng. Eranga Weeraratne, stated that going forward, farmers will no longer need to follow up on paperwork, as efficient services will be delivered through the automated exchange of data between systems. Meanwhile, Chief Advisor to the President on Digital Economy, Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya, noted that this initiative extends the national digital agenda into the agricultural sector and enables data-driven policy impact.
The CROPIX (Crop Resources, Optimizing Operations through Precise Information eXchange System) integrates the national crop registry, cultivation data, yield forecasting, and real-time reporting into a single platform.
Operating through mobile applications and web portals, the system brings farmers, officials, and policymakers together around one reliable and trusted data source.
FAO Representative Vimlendra Sharan highlighted that this system enhances the ability to identify climate risks and to develop cultivation plans aligned with market demand.
Through this initiative, services provided to farmers will be improved, and Sri Lanka’s food security will be strengthened by fostering a data-driven agricultural culture. This historic occasion was also attended by Acting Secretary to the Ministry of Digital Economy Waruna Sri Dhanapala, UN Resident Coordinator Marc-André Franche, FAO Representative Vimlendra Sharan, and several other distinguished participants.
