Time to take Bangladesh’s agriculture to the next level

The recent visit of the Bangladeshi delegation to Japan has resulted effectively in the signing of multiple agreements and memoranda of understanding, which will facilitate the realization of the interest of Japanese companies to invest and bring their technology and know-how to Bangladesh. These agreements are expected to enhance institutional cooperation between the two countries in various areas, such as ICT, defence, customs, metro rail, ship recycling, industrial upgrading, and agriculture in particular. This occasion, however, has highlighted the crucial need to improve the quality of agricultural products in Bangladesh to increase their value and access international markets.

For Bangladesh, agriculture acts like the backbone of its economy, people, and employment, playing an outstanding role in the country’s GDP as well. While growing constantly over the last 50 years, as World Bank data shows, Bangladesh surpassed Japan in terms of cereal production in 1973, never looked back, and had five times higher production than Japan in 2021. Quite interestingly, Bangladesh also had a higher per-hectare cereal production than India and China in 2021. In terms of per-hectare cereal production ranking, Bangladesh comes before Japan, India, and China, respectively.

This phenomenon certainly raises the intriguing question, “Shouldn’t it be us who help others increase their agricultural production?”

Certainly, many countries in the world can learn how to boost their agricultural production from Bangladesh. Yet, what Japan produces annually on its 4.4 million hectares (1 sq. km = 100 ha) of agricultural land, which is almost half the amount of agricultural land Bangladesh has, is valued higher than Bangladesh’s total annual agricultural production. For example, in 2020, Japan’s agriculture added $52.63 billion, and Bangladesh’s had $44.87 billion.

Though Japan’s data on value addition in 2021 isn’t available, its production was higher, and Bangladesh added $48.42 billion in the same year. Actually, Japan’s per-hectare value addition is higher than that of both China and India as well. In that case, Bangladesh follows Japan and precedes India and China. However, China and India added $1.2 trillion and $534.21 billion, respectively, to agriculture in the same year.

According to the World Bank’s data, Japan’s per-hectare production value is approximately $11,895, which is significantly higher than Bangladesh’s $4848, as well as India’s $2986 and China’s $2441.

Despite having only half the agricultural land and a tenth of the labor force compared to Bangladesh, Japan manages to create higher value in the sector while exporting eight to ten times more as well. This suggests that Japan has optimized its agriculture to a significant level. In terms of efficient resource mobilization and value creation, Japan’s efforts and achievements in agriculture serve as an example for other countries to follow.

A recent example can help explain why Bangladesh’s agricultural products are valued less despite being produced in vast quantities. On the occasion of the Bangladeshi delegation’s visit to Japan, one Japanese company expressed their interest in importing a particular variety of potato, Valencia, from Bangladesh. But we don’t yet have enough confidence in the production of that exportable and industrial-grade potato variety or varieties. Speaking on the occasion, agricultural minister Abdur Razzaque, who was on that state visit in Japan as an entourage member of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, said more than 10 million tonnes of potatoes are produced in the country every year, against a demand of 6-7 million tonnes. However, the demand for the varieties of potatoes that are currently being produced in Bangladesh is very low abroad, which may be the case for other crops as well.

Bangladesh’s agricultural sector’s continuous growth suggests that, it has enormous untapped potential to create more value. By adopting Japan’s efficient resource mobilisation and value creation strategies, Bangladesh could potentially increase its current agricultural value from $48 billion to $118 billion per year. It’s only possible if the sector is equipped with more educated and trained farmers, efficient use of machinery (which is alarmingly low among the aforementioned countries), improved and accessible infrastructure, mass production of quality variety crops, enhanced market access, research and development, and last but not least, prudent agricultural investments.

These are the core requirements for taking Bangladesh's agriculture to the next level. By implementing timely changes and responding to the pressing needs of this sector, Bangladesh could unlock its full potential and become a more significant player in the global market.

* Asif Mahmud is a learner in the communication sector and can be contacted at asifmahmud98@outlook.com