Food Production, Security
Bangladesh in right direction: FAO boss
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has lauded Bangladesh's sustained growth in farm production, but expressed concern over malnutrition faced by a large number of poor people.
“We need more production, more rice and fish, but these are not enough. The poor need more assets in their hands [so they can buy food],” said FAO Director General Jose Graziano da Silva.
Before leaving Bangladesh yesterday after a two-day visit, he shared his opinion at a press conference at Hotel Sonargaon in the capital.
During the visit, he held meetings with the prime minister, ministers of finance, agriculture, food, foreign affairs, environment; high officials concerned and the development partners. The main issues of discussion included agriculture, food security and climate change.
“During my visit, I was surprised to see a country…it is progressing towards right direction,” da Silva said, stating that Bangladesh has witnessed substantial production in rice and fish.
Bangladeshi scientists are quite active in developing and introducing stress-tolerant crop varieties, he added.
Rice production went up to 3.36 crore tonnes a year in 2010-11 from 1.78 crore tonnes in 1990-91. Production of livestock, fish and other crops has also increased.
At the press conference, Food Minister Dr Abdur Razzaque said 33 percent people, mainly children and women, of the country suffer from malnutrition.
To feed the rising population, more rice and fish production is required, da Silva told reporters. He also underscored the need for ensuring nutrition of food along with more production.
The world already has enough food though 925 million people are undernourished yet. The main cause of hunger is lack of adequate access to food. To address this, it has to be assured that people have the money to buy food or can grow enough for themselves and their families, says a statement by the FAO chief executive.
He suggested breathing new life into rural communities by supporting small-scale farmers, creating rural employments and taking up targeted safety net programmes like cash for work programmes for the poor.
da Silva said a market linkage for the small farmers is crucial as they often face problems in selling produces.
High food prices encourage farmers for more production that finally increases supply. The governments at such situations can give subsidies to increase peoples' purchase capacity, he suggested.
“Social and productive policies can and should be linked to complete a virtuous cycle in which local consumption and production feed off each other,” he said in the statement.
He said Bangladesh faces challenges of declining arable land, increasing population, salinity and drought. A regional cooperation in sharing knowledge can help face such challenges, he added.
Food Minister Dr Abdur Razzaque said the FAO DG has assured of helping Bangladesh get more support from the development partners in meeting its challenges.
He said Bangladesh has an employment generation programme for the poor, while it has been running open market sales of rice at subsidised rates amid market volatility.
Earlier, the food minister and the FAO top official inaugurated a documentation centre at the food ministry. The centre is maintaining national and international information on food both in electronic and printed forms.
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