What began as a targeted research project fueled by seed funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF), Sri Lanka, has blossomed into ‘Govinena’, a high-impact digital ecosystem revolutionizing the agricultural landscape. Originally conceptualized at the University of Colombo to address localized crop overproduction, this innovation successfully transitioned into a dynamic startup named ‘Widya’ (a research spin-off) in 2020, securing funding support and incubation from Western Sydney University in Australia. Today, the platform has expanded its footprint across borders, functioning effectively in Sri Lanka and India with successful use cases in Maharashtra and Telangana provinces while preparing for a broader rollout across the Global South.
Currently, ‘Govinena’ is a multi-award-winning commercial application. Considering its versatility in home gardening, it has been awarded the best invention in the commercialized category at the Southern Province Invention Competition; ‘Ruhuna Invention & Innovation Exhibition’ (RIIE) 2023. This award was given for its innovation and impact as a mobile-based agricultural information system supporting farmers and home gardeners.
It has a robust network of over 3,000 users and 176 agricultural extension officers and its most transformative current capability is providing real-time situational awareness through digitized maps of national crop production, offering a sophisticated data-driven tool to balance supply and demand, minimize post-harvest waste and safeguard national food security.