Agriculture in Bangladesh

Agriculture  Picture

Agriculture means is science and practice of producing crops. It is the mainstay of the majority of the people of Bangladesh. The other sub-sectors of agriculture are livestock, poultry, fisheries, and forestry. 

The total land area in Bangladesh is 14.4 million hectare. About 66.6% of this

land area is available for cultivation. Total land area of Bangladesh is divided into 30 agroecological zones and 88 sub-regions. Rice alone covers about 88% of the total cropped area. Agriculture land here is fragmented into small pieces because of the large number of farm holdings.

According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics about 70% of  the civilian labour forch are engaged in agriculture. Of the total agriculture labour force about 20% are paid day-labourers. The rest are the

cultivator themselves and unpaid family workers. Rural women and children constitute a substantial part of agriculture labour.

Agriculture contribution to GDP was more than 60% in the per-liberation period. But now it has declined to less than 30%. This shows that, we have not been able to increase our agriculture production in comparison with population growth. However, crop production is the most important sub-sector of our agriculture which covers about 72% of the total agriculture production. The shares of forestry, livestock, five is the most important crop. It occupies three-fourths of the total production.

Agriculture  Picture

Agriculture of Bangladesh can not cope with the increasing demand of our people due to some problems. There problems include illiteracy of our-farmers, lack of credit support, lack of technological know how and modern agricultural inputs, frequent natural calamities etc. In fact, agriculture in Bangladesh is still a 'gamble in the monsoon. Agricultural production here is affected sometimes by excessive rainfall and sometimes by drought.

The first and foremost step essential for the improvement of our agriculture is the education of our farmers. They should be taught the modern and scientific methods of cultivation. They should also well-trained in disaster management and past control. The farmers should be provided with credit on easy terms. In a word, to wipe out all the problems of agriculture, the government as well as the conscious part of our society should come forward. Only then we can hope for a better future for agriculture.

It is important to note that our farmers have stared following modern methods of agriculture. The government is also trying to improve our agriculture. At the same time, some NGO's have extended their helping hands to our farmers. Bangladesh Rice Research Institute(BRRI) and Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute(BARI) are working hard to improve seeds and methods of cultivation.

Agriculture  Picture

A Chinese account of 1349-50 AD stated agriculture in Bangladesh saying. "The seasons of Heaven have scattered the wealth of the Earth over this kingdom". We still have those wealth available. For example, we have agricultural resources like fertile land, water resources and a congenial agroclimate. Now, to crop with the changing atmosphere, we should develop our skills to increase agricultural production. At the same time, the government and the conscious people should provide every assistance to our farmers to ensure the improvement of our agriculture.