Coconut Tree Essay

Introduction

The coconut tree is often referred to as the “Tree of Life” in Sri Lanka because every part of it can be used efficiently. The fibrous husk of the coconut is called coir. (Refer to figure 1 in the Appendix) It can be either sold as raw material or processed into value added products such as brooms, twine, matting, woven and stitched geo-textiles, rubberized coir mattresses, and upholstery. The Coir Industry in Sri Lanka is known to be the world’s largest exporter of coir fibre and coir products. It is also known to be the single largest supplier of brown coir fibre to the world market. The coir industries in the Southern provinces of Sri Lanka are still cottage industries that employ more women than men. They are mostly situated in the Southern coasts because a high number of coconut plantations are present in those areas. Moreover, there are two ways to extract the coir fibre from the coconut husks. The first way is to include coconut husks to a machine, which stripes the husks producing fibres. The second way is to soak the coconut husks in water for fourteen days until the consisted acidity is gone and turned red in color.

Coir fibre extraction, making ropes and mats are a

Therefore, even though, the poor people who are working in this industry get some income to just merely satisfy their basic needs, Futher the poor working conditions and threats of unemployment with no development prove that there is not much of a positive aspect on this industry, instead there is a great deal of negative aspects with regard to the impact of Globalization on the Coir Industry of Sri Lanka. . These women workers continue to work because they do not have other choices and also they do not have enough skills. Most husbands of these women working in this sector are also employed at a lower wage to sustain their living