Govt takes steps to protect livestock sector from losses

The government has embarked on short, mid and long-term measures to help protect the country's livestock sector from possible financial losses caused by coronavirus pandemic, an official said.
As part of the move, the Department of Livestock Services (DLS) has taken the measures at the directives of the fisheries and livestock ministry to help save the entrepreneurs of the sector from the possible havoc due to COVID-19.
"We have taken short, mid and long-term measures to help sustain our livestock sector from possible losses caused by coronavirus," DLS director general (DG) Dr Abdul Jabbar Sikder told the FE on Wednesday.
He said the entrepreneurs of the poultry and livestock sector have been going through tough times due to some problems caused by COVID-19, a highly contagious disease.
The measures include exemption of interest against bank loans and providing incentives for livestock farmers in a bid to keep nurturing of cattle, he mentioned.
The DG said they also recommended that the MoF&L extend financial support to the labourers working for the sector.
He said they have directed the officials of DLS to coordinate with deputy commissioners and law enforcement agencies, including police, to ensure smooth supply of poultry birds, eggs, milk and livestock to different places of the country.
Mr Sikder said fisheries and livestock minister SM Rezaul Karim has also requested stakeholders and government departments concerned to help livestock farmers in rearing cattle during the outbreak of coronavirus.
The MoF&L has launched a hotline (02-9122557) at its control room so that the ministry could instantly know about the problems facing the poultry and livestock farmers.
The size of the country's poultry industry was Tk 100 billion in 2010 which has now increased to between Tk 300 billion and Tk 350 billion.
There are around 90,000 poultry farms in the country involving nearly 0.2 million people for producing meat, milk and eggs.
Bangladesh has become self-sufficient in production of meat and eggs. Meat and egg production surged 496 per cent and 198 per cent respectively in a decade between fiscal years 2009-10 and 2018-19. The annual growth of the livestock sector is around 3.47 per cent, according to DLS.

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