Browsing by Author "Mohamed, M.S. A."

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    Constraints Faced by Potato Farmers in Major Potato Growing Areas in Sri Lanka: An ICT based Intervention
    (Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2020) Mohamed, M.S. A.; Wathugala, D.L.; Indika, W.A.; Madushika, M.K.S.; Piyaratne, M.K.D.K.; Samaraweera, G.C.
    Potato is one of the most attractive crops and plays an important role in human nutrition. However, the average yield of the potato is less than its yield potential and local production is insufficient to meet the demand in Sri Lanka. Therefore, a field survey was conducted in major potato growing districts such as Badulla, Nuwara-Eliya, and Jaffna to examine key challenges faced by potato farmers. One hundred potato farmers were selected through a purposive sampling technique and interviewed using a structured questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS. The majority of farmers from study areas cultivate potato for consumption other than seed purpose and enriched with smallholdings. Results revealed that low farmgate prices (37%), pest and disease attacks (32%), and high cost of farm inputs (20%) are the major challenges faced by the majority of farmers. Low farmgate price for potatoes is mainly due to the involvement of a higher number of middlemen, the majority of farmers cultivate potato at the same time and low quality. Potato early blight, late blight, and bacterial wilt were common diseases; mite and whitefly attacks were the common pest attacks faced by the majority of farmers. Furthermore, high input price constituted the cost of seed potato (63%), fertilizer and chemical cost (18%), machinery and labor cost (12%), and cost for irrigation (7%). Thus, the importation of seed potatoes was the key influential factor for the increase of input price. The study recommends improving better coordination among stakeholders in the industry and it is crucial to direct farmers to follow proper cultivation and harvesting techniques. Further, the study suggested that it is important to come up with a mobilebased solution mainly among farmers to access context-specific information promptly and easily; that could be resolved major challenges faced by potato farmers in Sri Lanka. Keywords: Key challenges, Potato farmers, Yield
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    A Model for a Mobile Application to Support Agro-ecological Zones based Crop Selection in Sri Lanka
    (Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2020) Mohamed, M.S. A.; Wathugala, D.L.; Indika, W.A.; Madushika, M.K.S.; Piyaratne, M.K.D.K.; Samaraweera, G.C.
    Agriculture is the key source of livelihood and economic support for the Sri Lankan population. The farmer is the salient stakeholder in agriculture and he has to decide the appropriate crops for cultivation in every season. This decision should be primarily based on market conditions including pricing but several other factors such as climatic conditions of the area, land suitability, irrigation facilities, etc. should also take into consideration. Thus, crop selection is a vital and critical decision that farmer has to get in the farming lifecycle and many farmers face problems in selecting the right crops at the right time to grow. Therefore, in this study, a digital platform has been created to provide crop suitability information based on the agro-ecological zones in Sri Lanka. Providing information regarding suitable crops according to agro-ecological zones in Sri Lanka is the correct intervention to facilitate farmers during the crop selection stage. Contextual data for crop selection were mainly gathered through primary and secondary sources. The study learned that the agro-ecological zones have been classified based on different climatic zones, annual rainfall, terrain characteristics, available major soil groups, and recommended crops for all agro-ecological zones. A crop selection model was designed and listed out suitable crops based on 46 agro-ecological zones in Sri Lanka. Further, this decision is depended on the influence factors such as major cultivation seasons, irrigation types, and farmer preferences, etc. The designed model has been provided through a mobile-based platform to the farmers. Then, they could easily find recommended crops and varieties suitable to their farms by asking users to add their Province, District, Divisional Secretariat, and Grama Niladhari, division. Thus, the model will be promised in supporting farmers to increase the profit and social status of the farmers in Sri Lanka. Keywords: Agriculture, Agro-ecological zones, Crop selection, Farmers, Mobile application