The Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI) held a workshop in Gazipur on Wednesday, 23 September, on its progress, achievements and plans for the years ahead. The same event opened a training course on 'modern office and financial management and procurement' for scientists of grade six and above.

Md Selim Khan, secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, was chief guest at the opening. BRRI's director general, Dr Md Rafiqul Islam, presided.

The secretary called agricultural scientists the people working behind the scenes of the country's food security. "The present government will give talented agricultural scientists their proper due," he said.

He added that rice scientists were working tirelessly to meet the country's food and nutrition needs, and that their research and innovation were moving rice production forward.

The workshop reviewed BRRI's recent record: rice research, the development of new varieties and technologies, technology transfer, higher rice output, and the spread of modern farming technology to farmers in the field.

Discussion of the institute's future work stressed raising rice production further, coping with the effects of climate change, developing modern and sustainable technologies for farmers, and strengthening research to secure the country's food and nutrition.

BRRI is Bangladesh's national institute for rice varieties and cultivation technology, the staple on which most of the country's farms depend, so the direction of its research reaches directly into farmers' yields and costs. The report is by Agricare24's staff correspondent.

Source: Agricare24