The Hindu : International : Kumaratunga awarded Ceres Medal

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, May 30, 2004

International

International

Kumaratunga awarded Ceres Medal

By V.S. Sambandan

COLOMBO, MAY 29. The President of Sri Lanka, Chandrika Kumaratunga, was today awarded the Ceres Medal by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) for "her efforts to foster rural development and peace in Sri Lanka.''

The director-general of the FAO, Jacques Diouf, who presented the award, said that the medal " represents an acknowledgement of her commitment to international partnership and food security as a means of achieving a world free of hunger and poverty.'' Dr. Diouf spoke about Ms. Kumaratunga's "long-standing efforts to promote peace and provide adequate food, water, shelter and education for the people of Sri Lanka.''

Ms. Kumaratunga said that it was a "humbling experience'' and "an honour conferred on the people of Sri Lanka and on those unsung hundreds of experts and public servants'' whose work made it possible for her country to "ward off the extreme consequences of hunger and poverty.''

The FAO awards the Ceres Medal, named after the Roman goddess of agriculture, to distinguished women who have fought against poverty. Previous recipients from South Asia include the late Indian Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, the late Mother Teresa and the former Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina.

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