Eco Innovation Project on Agri food SMEs in Sri Lanka

Published on February 11, 2015

The United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) has initiated a project on eco-innovation aiming to develop local resources and capacities to incorporate sustainability throughout all business operations in developing and emerging economies. Sri Lanka; as an emerging economy has been selected to implement a pilot project focusing small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) of Agri-food sector. The project will ultimately select 8 industries to provide technical assistance to enhance their sustainability performances which will have an impact on the value chain of a company, from strategy and business model through to operational activities such as design, production, purchasing and marketing. National Cleaner Production Centre, Sri Lanka (NCPCSL) is the local implementing partner for the project. NCPCSL is one of the foremost sustainable solution providers in Sri Lanka.

Enable to save cost through reduced resources usage such as raw material, energy & water Revenue growth can be achieved by targeting new markets, which were perhaps not suitable or interested existing service offerings. Ensure complying with regulations and buyer requirements through implementation of sustainable solutions Enhance the relationship of the management with employees Creation of a network within the industry,enhancing symbiosis between international& local service providers Ability to learn from the best through success stories around the globe - Research and engage in-country stakeholder groups and collaborating partners which will combine different areas of expertise for the project implementation. - Conduct research and identify companies for the pilot application based on the methods outlined in the UNEP Eco-innovation Manual, identifying main challenges and opportunities companies face. - Select up to 8 SMEs in the agri-food sector to implement the pilot project. This will ensure that a minimum of 5 SMEs will be fully engaged in the implementation of the entire Eco-innovation methodology. - Document at least 5 case studies to demonstrate the results of the project and the value-added of eco-innovation to the company -Research and engage in-country stakeholder groups and collaborating partners which will combine different areas of expertise for the project implementation. -Conduct research and identify companies for the pilot application based on the methods outlined in the UNEP Eco-innovation Manual, identifying main challenges and opportunities companies face. - Select up to 8 SMEs in the agri-food sector to implement the pilot project. This will ensure that a minimum of 5 SMEs will be fully engaged in the implementation of the entire Eco-innovation methodology -Prepare a documentation of feedback and lessons learned from the pilot implementation of the UNEP Eco-innovation Manual Eng V R Sena Peiris Ms Sachira Vilochani Ms Upendra Arjeewani Ms. Uthpala Sankalpani