Women in Bangladesh have now moved ahead in agricultural higher education. In this academic year's admission test for the seven public universities offering agricultural education, female students are ahead of male students. Of all the students selected for admission through a single test with a common question paper, 50.42 per cent are women. More women than men have also been admitted at several individual universities, including Bangladesh Agricultural University.

Earlier, women had already overtaken men in medical education. Among students admitted to medical colleges last academic year, about 60 per cent were women and 40 per cent men. Some years before that, girls had overtaken boys in enrolment at primary and secondary level, and girls are now the majority at both. According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Educational Information and Statistics (BANBEIS), 50.75 per cent of primary pupils are girls, and at secondary level the figure is about 54 per cent. Women still lag behind at college and other levels of higher education, but their participation is rising every year.

It is against this background that the figures on agricultural higher education have emerged. Vice-chancellors of several universities and people involved in agricultural research call it positive and say it will also have a positive effect on the country's agriculture.

To reduce hardship for students, the seven public universities awarding agricultural degrees held a cluster admission test for the first time this academic year (2019-20), admitting students through a single test on one day with common questions. The test was held on 30 November. The universities are Bangladesh Agricultural University, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Sylhet Agricultural University, Patuakhali Science and Technology University, Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University and Khulna Agricultural University. They have 3,551 first-year honours seats. There were 75,872 applicants; after preliminary screening, 23,467 sat the test. Of those who took part, 55.11 per cent were male and 44.89 per cent female.

When the results were published, the women were ahead on the merit list even though more men had taken part: 50.42 per cent of those on the merit list are women and 49.58 per cent men. Admissions are now complete and classes have begun. Individually, women's lead is clearest at the older and larger agricultural universities. At Bangladesh Agricultural University, 1,108 students were admitted to the first year this time, 603 women and 505 men, meaning more than 54 per cent of those admitted are women.

Bangladesh Agricultural University vice-chancellor Lutful Hassan told Prothom Alo that this is the first time more women than men have been admitted at the university. Women did well in the admission test and are ahead on the merit list, he said, and this will have a positive effect on the country's agriculture.

At Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, 351 women and 320 men have been admitted. Vice-chancellor Kamal Uddin Ahmed told Prothom Alo that one or two years ago about 53 per cent of those admitted were men and the rest women. This is the first time more women have been admitted: 52 per cent women and 48 per cent men were selected this time. He believes women are advancing in education for various reasons, including the government's incentives for women's education.

At Khulna Agricultural University, 142 students have been admitted against 150 seats: 75 women and 67 men.

Tamal Lata Aditya, director (research) at the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), believes the rise of women in agricultural education will have a positive effect on the whole farm sector. She is herself a former student of Bangladesh Agricultural University, admitted in 1987 and graduating in 1993. She told Prothom Alo that 10 to 12 per cent of those admitted were women then. Women's progress in agricultural education will certainly benefit the whole sector, she said, and women are now doing well in agricultural science, including developing new varieties. She attributes the trend to a much wider job market, more opportunities in agricultural research and greater interest in agriculture.

Source: Prothom Alo. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.