SRI LANKA - AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT

THIS WILL HELP TO DOUBLE THE ANNUAL NUMBER OF INDIGENOUSLY TRAINED B.S. GRADUATES AND TO TRIPLE THE ANNUAL NUMBER OF POSTGRADUATES BY 1985. FIFTY PGIA AND FACULTY STAFF WILL BE TRAINED. TRAINESS INCLUDE PRESENT JUNIOR AND SENIOR STAFF, AS WELL AS NEW RECRUITS. ACADEMIC TRAINING WILL BE CONDUCTED IN THE US FOR TWO YEARS LEADING TO A PH.D, AT WHICH TIME TRAINEES WILL PROPOSE RESEARCH RELEVANT TO SRI LANKA TO BE CONDUCTED IN SRI LANKA UNDER EXPERT SUPERVISION. AFTER RESEARCH IS COMPLETED, TRAINEES WILL RETURN TO THE US TO COMPLETE COURSEWORK AND DEFEND A THESIS. WHEN PH.D. STUDIES ARE COMPLETED, THESE TRAINEES WILL COMPOSE THE NEW CORE STAFF UPON WHICH THE NUMBER OF ACADEMIC DEPARTMENTS IN PGIA AND FACULTY WILL BE INCREASED. THE SIX MAJOR DEPARTMENTS IN THE UNDERGRADUATE B.S.C. DEGREE AND THE POSTGRADUATE BOARDS OF STUDY AT PGIA WILL BE: CROP SCIENCE, AGRICULTURAL BIOLOGY, AGRICULTURE CHEMISTRY, AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS AND OUTREACH, ANIMAL HUSBANDRY, AND AGRICULTURE ENGINEERING. LABORATORIES AND LIBRARIES WILL BE EQUIPPED, AND THE PGIA AND FACULTY FARMS WILL BE DEVELOPED INTO AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATIONS THAT WILL SERVE AS THE FIELD RESEARCH ARMS OR POSTGRADUATE, UNDERGRADUATE, AND LOWER LEVEL, SHORT-TERM TRAINING. THE 24 ACRE FARM AT MEEWATURA, PERADENIYA WILL BE DEVOTED TO 0.25 TO ONE ACRE "HOME GARDEN" DEMONSTRATION PLOTS. THE DODANGOLLA FARM IN KUNDASALE WILL BE DIVIDED IN TO A 159 ACRE CROP SCIENCE UNIT AND A 46 ACRE ANIMAL HUSBANDRY UNIT. THESE EXPERIMENT STATIONS WILL PRODUCE RESULTS THAT WILL BE USEFUL TO SMALL FARMERS AND VILLAGES IN THE GEOGRAPHIC AREA. THE ACADEMY FOR EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT WILL PROVIDE ONGOING TECHNICAL ANALYSES AS WELL AS EVALUATIONS.