FE REPORT
Bangladesh and China's Fujian Province have agreed to establish new partnership to expand cooperation in agriculture, fertiliser supply, rural development, fisheries, food processing and renewable energy.
Both sides reached a broad understanding to work together on technology transfer, agricultural research, fertiliser security, agricultural modernisation, cold-chain development, rural infrastructure and sustainable development initiatives, says a press release.
The understanding came on Wednesday in a series of meetings at the Bangladesh Secretariat attended by Agriculture Minister Mohammad Amin Ur Rashid, Agriculture Secretary Dr Rafiqul E Mohamed, and Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) Chairman Md. Azizul Islam and Lin Guoshan, Secretary of the CPC Party Leadership Group and Director of the Fujian Provincial Supply and Marketing Cooperative.
A key focus of the discussions was the renewal of the existing DAP fertiliser supply agreement between the government of Bangladesh and Banyan International Trading Limited and Fujian Funong Agricultural Means of Production Group Co., Ltd. of Fujian Province.
The Chinese delegation stressed the importance of renewing the agreement within this month to ensure uninterrupted fertiliser supplies ahead of Bangladesh's September-October procurement season.
According to the delegation, an early renewal would help ensure the timely availability of DAP fertiliser for Bangladeshi farmers during the upcoming cultivation season.
The Bangladesh side informed the delegation that the Ministry of Agriculture had already initiated the renewal process and expected the required government procedures to be completed within the next few days.
They noted that the government's fertiliser procurement programme would begin shortly, making the timely renewal of the agreement essential to maintaining uninterrupted supplies.
The Chinese delegation reaffirmed its commitment to supporting Bangladesh's fertiliser requirements and expressed willingness to further strengthen long-term cooperation with the government of Bangladesh in the fertiliser sector.
During the meetings, the Fujian delegation also presented an overview of the province's agricultural achievements and technological capabilities.
The Bangladesh side at the meetings expressed keen interests in adopting Fujian's agricultural technologies to enhance domestic food production, particularly rice cultivation.
They said increasing rice productivity remains a national priority for ensuring food security.
The Chinese delegation said advanced hybrid rice varieties and scientific cultivation techniques developed in Fujian are capable of producing up to 3.67 tonnes of paddy per acre under favorable growing conditions.
At the meetings food processing was identified as another priority area for cooperation.
Bangladesh sought Chinese technical assistance for value-added processing of jackfruit and other fruits, particularly dried jackfruit chips and export-oriented food products.
The meetings also explored cooperation in crab hatcheries, commercial aquaculture and modern fish farming, including species such as tilapia and pomfret.
Bangladesh informed the delegation about its plans to gradually convert more than 200,000 electricity- and diesel-powered irrigation pumps into solar-powered systems.
Officials said the initiative could potentially save the country around US$1.0 billion annually in fuel import costs.
Beyond agriculture, discussions also covered rural development, waste management, safe drinking water, rural infrastructure and integrated agricultural services.
Lin Guoshan said the Chinese government is willing to expand cooperation through grant-funded development assistance and other cooperation programmes in sectors including agriculture, rural development, fisheries, education, scientific research and technology.
syful-islam@outlook.com
