Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said there is no alternative to agricultural development if Bangladesh is to become a developed and prosperous country through sustainable socio-economic development.

She said agriculture is the main driving force of Bangladesh's economy. Although the country is agrarian, she said, most of its people could not get two meals of rice a day because of the misguided policies and neglect of the Pakistani rulers.

After independence, Sheikh Hasina said, the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman adopted a range of policies that gave priority to agriculture, which later helped the country achieve food security and self-sufficiency.

The prime minister made the remarks on Thursday (2 February) in a message marking the "International Agro Technology Fair". She said she was pleased to learn that the Rural Development Academy (Palli Unnayan Academy), Bogura, was organising the three-day fair in Dhaka from 2 to 4 February 2023.

She said the Awami League government, following in the footsteps of the Father of the Nation, has since 2009 adopted farmer-friendly policies and timely programmes for the modernisation and overall development of agriculture. "We have set up new agricultural universities to spread modern agricultural education. We have expanded research opportunities at agricultural universities and agriculture-related research institutes. We have ensured the use of digital technology in agriculture," she said.

Direct information exchange with farmers has been arranged through Krishi Batayan, the Krishak-Bandhu phone service (3331), Krishoker Janala and the Krishi Call Centre (16123), she added.

Sheikh Hasina said this has made possible the development of flood-, drought- and salinity-tolerant crop varieties, as well as floating cultivation to tackle climate change, diversified crop production, the development of transgenic varieties, and the decoding of the jute genome sequence along with securing intellectual property rights.

"Our government is cutting the prices of all agricultural inputs, including fertiliser and seed, giving farmers loans on easy terms at low interest, the opportunity to open bank accounts with Tk 10, and cash support," the prime minister said. "Power tillers, harvesters and other farm machinery are being distributed to farmers at up to 70 percent subsidy. By implementing these programmes we have achieved self-sufficiency in food production."

She said the farm machinery and technology on show at the fair would encourage the country's farming community to modernise and mechanise agriculture. The fair would also give researchers, manufacturers, importers, technology users and local and foreign entrepreneurs in agriculture and agro-technology a chance to exchange information and experience.

Expressing hope that the fair would make a significant contribution to raising sustainable productivity in the farm sector and ensuring food security, the prime minister wished the 11th Agro Tech Bangladesh 2023 exhibition every success.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.