World Bank-aided project: Kerala to set up agri-marketing outlets

Thiruvananthapuram: Retail chains for value-added agricultural products to be set up across the state as a part of the ‘Kera’ initiative aided by the World Bank. 

The ‘Kera’ project aims at comprehensive modernization of the agricultural sector by focusing on micro, small, and medium enterprises in the food processing and marketing sector. The project will also encourage start-ups that can help small farmers. The objective is to expand marketing channels with a view to exporting value-added agri products.

The project will be implemented at a budget of Rs 2109 crore. The World Bank's aid is  Rs 1400 crore and the rest will be borne by the state. The draft for this comprehensive project has been prepared by the agriculture department and a project management team formulated.

It is expected that the implementation of this project will solve many of the challenges plaguing the agricultural sector in the state like storage of materials and production and export of value-added products.