High Commission of India
Colombo

  PRESS RELEASE

 Capacity building programme for officials from Fisheries Societies of Sri Lanka

A delegation of 20 officials of various Fisheries Societies from Ministry of Fisheries, Aquatic and Ocean Resources, Government of Sri Lanka underwent capacity building and knowledge-sharing programme at Vaikunth Mehta National Institute of Cooperative Management (VAMNICOM), Pune, Maharashtra from 15 – 22 September 2026.

2. 2. The programme aimed to strengthen the institutional, managerial, and entrepreneurial capacity of Sri Lanka’s fisheries cooperatives. It also sought to support the development of viable, commercially oriented, and sustainable cooperative enterprises.
   
   
3. 3. The programme featured a comprehensive set of technical sessions and practical exposure on cooperative governance and management; formation and strengthening of fisheries cooperatives; cooperative business models and livelihood development; fisheries management and sustainable aquaculture; fisheries value chains, post-harvest handling and value addition; quality control and processing practices; marketing and branding of cooperative products; entrepreneurship and financial management; leadership and institutional development; and sharing of best practices from successful Indian cooperative organizations.
   
   
4. 4. The delegation also visited established fisheries, dairy, agricultural and agro-processing cooperatives, to gain practical insights into cooperative-based business operations, value addition, technology adoption and market linkages.
   
   
5. 5. The programme was organized under the ongoing capacity-development cooperation between India and Sri Lanka. This partnership was further strengthened following Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka in April 2025, during which he announced 700 customized annual training slots for Sri Lankan professionals. Combined with the 300 Sri Lankan civil servants trained annually under a MoU between India’s National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG) and the Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration (SLIDA), India’s capacity-building initiatives now benefit 1,000 Sri Lankans every year.

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 Colombo
22 September 2026