Located in Badalkumbura, Sri Lanka, the Karawilaella Export Crop Suppliers Cooperative is dedicated to enhancing pepper production and market opportunities for its members. The cooperative consists of 60 members, including 20 youth and 12 men, with 10 members actively engaged in pepper processing. Each member holds 5,000 shares, ensuring collective investment and commitment to the cooperative’s growth.
A key initiative of the cooperative has been the direct supply of high-quality pepper to hospitals, establishing a unique and stable market. This strategic move has provided members with a more reliable income stream. Additionally, the cooperative purchases raw pepper from its members, further supporting small-scale farmers in the region.
The cooperative secured an ARISE loan of 70 lakhs, enabling it to expand operations and improve processing facilities. However, challenges remain, including unsteady market prices and fungal issues that can affect stored pepper. Addressing these concerns will be crucial for sustaining long-term profitability and enhancing the resilience of the cooperative’s supply chain. Through continued investment and strategic partnerships, the cooperative aims to strengthen its market presence and improve income opportunities for its members.
The Karawila Ella Export Crop Producers Cooperative is one of the partner organizations supported by the APFP-FO4A and ARISE programs, which are implemented in Sri Lanka by SANASA International.
The Asia Pacific Farmers’ Programme (APFP)- Support to Farmers’ Organizations for Asia (FO4A) aims to contribute to an enabling environment for rural poverty reduction, through instrumental support to rural smallholders and their organizations at national, sub-regional, and regional levels in Asia and the Pacific. The objective is that by the end of the program, farmer organizations are professionally capacitated to provide sustainable demand-driven (business and technical) services to their members and engage in effective policy dialogue for the improved livelihoods and incomes of smallholder farmers/producers in Asia and the Pacific. APFP-FO4A is implemented in Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Mongolia, and China. APFP-FO4A benefits around 25 million individuals–of which 4.5 million are women and 4 million are youth. APFP is financed by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and FO4A is co-financed by the European Union (EU) and IFAD.
APFP-FO4A is implemented by the consortium Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA) and La Via Campesina (LVC).
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