Sustainable agricultural development

A good number of suggestions have emerged out of the deliberations by the participants in the just-concluded conference of Bangladesh Economic Association (BEA). It is now for the country's policy-makers to consider the same. Among the proposals, the one on do's and don'ts in agricultural sector is of great importance. This is because the sector is still the biggest employer and largely relevant to ensuring food security. It has rightly been emphasised by the participants in the conference that production of bumper harvests of paddy as well as potato alone will not necessarily ensure food security the country strives for. Economists have highlighted the pertinent need for diversification of crops, sustainable irrigation and farmers' easy access to storage facility for attaining food security. They have also made strong pleas for ensuring a nutritional balance.

A number of overlapping issues that pose challenges to sustainable agricultural growth have come under scrutiny in one of the sessions of the conference. Production of rice has, no doubt, gone up strikingly over the past couple of decades. But excessive dependence on high-yielding varieties of rice which require more inputs such as fertiliser and pesticides, has contributed to soil degradation and drastic fall in underground water table. The situation calls for balanced use of fertiliser and increased production and use of organic fertiliser and pesticide. Furthermore, it is important to disseminate the already developed technologies and practices that require less inputs such as water, fertiliser and integrated pest management approaches.

Half a million tonnes of additional rice are required every year to feed the country's growing population. Per capita consumption of rice in Bangladesh is one of the highest in the world but it might drop with the growth of the economy. Food behaviour will change in line with the growth of the economy. That is why more importance should be given to other foods. Crop varieties of short maturity are the need of the day.

Furthermore, what is critically important today is a consideration of climate change while chalking out strategies on agriculture as crop output might drop eight per cent by 2030 due to, what experts have observed, its fallouts. Bangladesh is among the countries that are most vulnerable to climate change. An agro-climatological advisory service should be set up immediately to help farmers get weather-related information. This year has amply showed what changes are coming in the days ahead. Seed varieties suitable for unfavourable climatic conditions have to be developed. Besides, livestock and fisheries are important sub-sectors but they have not received enough attention from the policy-makers, particularly in terms of research. The government, as has been highlighted by the competent experts in the BEA conference, should give priority to research on livestock and fisheries. It is time to engage the landless farmers in livestock farming. The need for an organised community-based or group-based farming, supported by the government and private sector, can hardly be overstressed. This will help reduce production cost and increase efficiency. There must also be planned housing in rural areas to reduce loss of arable land due to growing human settlements. For all practical purposes, research is pivotal to promoting sustainable growth of the overall agriculture sector. There is now a lack of coordination among agricultural research institutions. Mechanisms for coordination among them should be developed.