Malwatte Valley Plantations PLC Director and CEO Shanaka Samaradiwakara has been appointed Chairman of the Planters’ Association of Ceylon (PAC), while Kahawatte Plantations PLC Director and CEO Binesh Pananwala has been appointed Deputy Chairman. The appointments were made at the Association’s 172nd Annual General Meeting (AGM), held on 19 September at Cinnamon Grand.
The event was attended by Central Bank Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe as Chief Guest and Sri Lanka Tea Board Chairman Raj Obeyesekere as Guest of Honour.
In his inaugural address, Samaradiwakara outlined a five-point vision for Sri Lanka’s plantation sector, focusing on value addition, research and development, land use and productivity, irrigation, and long-term security of tenure. He stressed that the future of commercial agriculture in Sri Lanka would depend on how effectively industry stakeholders work together while maintaining a clear understanding of the challenges faced by producers.
Value-added tea accounted for more than 50 percent of Sri Lanka’s total tea export volumes in 2025. Samaradiwakara noted that Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs) have contributed the majority of this volume through continued investment in value-added products, including recent investments in matcha, green tea and artisanal teas.
Against this backdrop, he sought support from the Sri Lanka Tea Board and the export sector to protect the emerging high-value tea segment. He pointed out that significant quantities of green tea and other high-value teas remain unsold at auctions while similar products continue to enter the country.
“We respectfully request the authorities to review this matter and introduce appropriate measures to support domestic production and value addition,” he said.
Addressing research and development, Samaradiwakara highlighted the limited availability of commercially viable alternatives to several essential crop protection products. He called on the Tea, Rubber and Coconut Research Institutes to take the lead in developing practical and scientifically proven alternatives.
He also stressed the need for immediate attention to diseases affecting the rubber industry. “We cannot afford to repeat the experience of the coffee industry, where coffee blight devastated the sector,” he added.
On land-use policies and productivity, Samaradiwakara noted that RPCs have diversified their agricultural activities for more than two decades in response to changing rainfall patterns. Crops such as oil palm, pepper and avocado have been introduced as part of this diversification.
However, he warned that these investments are increasingly being affected by policy constraints, agricultural theft and crop damage caused by wild animals. These challenges are resulting in significant security costs for plantation companies each month.
“It is imperative that these investments are protected through strong enforcement, appropriate regulatory reforms, and effective measures to address both agricultural theft and crop damage,” he said.
On irrigation, Samaradiwakara appealed to the Government to reconsider restrictions on groundwater use and simplify the approval process for drilling tube wells, which he said would support greater climate resilience across the plantation sector.
Security of tenure was another key concern raised at the AGM. Samaradiwakara pointed out that replanting can take more than a decade before generating meaningful revenue, making long-term certainty over land leases important for investment decisions.
He said uncertainty surrounding lease extensions was making it more difficult for RPCs to attract foreign direct investment and secure long-term financing.
“If we are to attract fresh capital, accelerate replanting, modernise our plantations and improve productivity, security and certainty of tenure are mandatory,” he added.
Chief Guest Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe echoed the importance of improving productivity and competitiveness across the plantation sector.
“The question before planters is no longer simply how much we produce, but how efficiently we produce, what value we create, and how competitive we will be in global markets 10 or 20 years from now,” he said.
He noted that Sri Lanka’s agricultural exports increased from US$2.8 billion in 2024 to US$3.1 billion in 2025.
Dr. Weerasinghe also called for climate resilience to be treated as an economic and investment issue, while highlighting the need for structured long-term financing for replanting, rehabilitation and irrigation. He further encouraged a shift from volume-based production towards greater value creation and identified plantation tourism as a potential avenue for diversifying estate revenues.
Providing an overview of the Association’s development, outgoing Chairman Sunil Poholiyadde outlined the transformation of the RPC sector over the past three decades.
The Association currently represents 23 RPCs managing approximately 154,000 hectares across tea, rubber, oil palm, coconut and other crops. Since 1995, the sector’s capital base has increased from Rs.8 billion to Rs.108 billion, while approximately Rs.290 billion has been invested in replanting, mechanisation and factory development.
Looking ahead, Poholiyadde identified labour shortages, rising input costs, climate change, limited mechanisation and uncertainty over land tenure among the key challenges facing the sector.
With approximately 88,500 workers employed on estates, representing around 10 percent of the resident population, he noted that wage adjustments need to be aligned with productivity-linked employment models as the industry seeks to address both labour availability and long-term competitiveness.
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