HomeAward – Ms. S.B.A.M.A.M....

WINNER
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Ms. S.B.A.M.A.M. Gunawardhana

The Best Agriculturist of the Year 2022

Ms. S.B.A.M.A.M. Gunawardhana Born in March 1967 in Moratuwa got her primary education from Government School Paluwelgala, Holy Family Convent Marawila, and completed her secondary education at St. Paul’s Girls School Milagiriya, Bambalapitiya. Subsequently, graduated from the Faculty of Agriculture, the University of Peradeniya in 1995, and she obtained her MSc Degree in Food Science & Technology from the University of Peradeniya in 2010. Due to her interest in law, she entered Sri Lanka Law College and completed the Preliminary Exam (First year) of Attorney-at-Law.

She joined the Sri Lanka Agricultural Service in 2000 and started her career as a lecturer at the Sri Lanka School of Agriculture, Wariyapola. During the latter stage, she worked as the principal of the school. Then she got a transfer to the Sri Lanka School of Agriculture, Kundasale, in 2012 and served as a lecturer and finally as a vice principal.

In 2018, she was appointed as the District Director of Agriculture, in Badulla. She contributed to agriculture Production, Development, and Marketing of Badulla District in coordination with the Ministry of Agriculture, technical departments, farming community, and administrative bodies. She has also contributed to agriculture development by planning and implementing a number of projects.

In 2019, she reached another turning point in her career. She was appointed as the Provincial Director of Agriculture (Uva Province) giving her the entire responsibility of the agricultural development in the province. She coordinated several nationally and internationally funded projects in order to uplift the livelihood of the farming community in the UVA province. She pioneered to commencement of the NVQ Level 4 course for Field Assistants (Agriculture) in District Agriculture Training Centre in Bible.

She has immensely contributed to the Sri Lanka Organization for Agriculture Professionals, the Sri Lanka Institute of Agriculture, and the Sri Lanka Agricultural Extension Association as an office bearer of the Executive committees. She is a professional fellow in agriculture extension at the Sri Lanka Institute of Agriculture since 2020.