Agrilife24.com:The Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) and Solidaridad Network Asia signed a MOU on December 27, 2021 to collaboratively implement the “Smart Farming, Healthy Food” project to develop sustainable and climate-resilient smallholder vegetable production and supply systems in the Barishal and Chattogram Districts of Bangladesh, under SDG Partnership Initiative of Netherlands Enterprise Agency.
Through this partnership, efficient and effective need based extension services will be promoted in the Barisal and Chittagong divisions to promote eco-friendly, safe, climate resilient production system as well as adoption of global sustainability standards to improve productivity and quality. This will be broadly done through 1) sustainable and climate resilient smallholder vegetable production, 2) improvement in input and output market system, and 3) creating enabling environment for climate-resilient and sustainable vegetable production and supply system through the development of a climate-smart Bangladesh GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) and capacity building of local extension officers.
Director General, Department of Agricultural Extension Mr. Md. Asadullah appreciated the collaborative initiative to foster agricultural productivity and market development and assured that DAE will extend its support to the project. He also requested the DAE officials to work together and make the private public partnership effective for agricultural transformation.
Mr. Selim Reza Hasan, Country Manager of Solidaridad Network Asia in Bangladesh mentioned that the project is designed to demonstrate a scalable model to transform the vegetables production and market system to supply safe vegetables to local, national and possibly to the export market. Mr. Hasan mentioned that under the “Smart Farming, Healthy Food” project, the consortium will create climate smart GAP curriculum that would be eventually scaled up by DAE. He thanked the Director General, all the directors and officials of DAE for their support in implementing the previous projects of Solidaridad in Bangladesh.
Among others, the Director of Planning Wing, DAE, Mr. Md. Abul Kashem, Additional Director, Planning Wing, Dr. Md. Sarwarul Haque, and other officials of DAE were present. Mr. Yeasin Kabir, Knowledge Transfer Manager from East-West Seed Knowledge Transfer, Mr. Indu Bhushan Roy, Senior Programme Manager, Solidaridad Network Asia, Mr. Md. Moziball Hoque, Senior Manager, Supply Chain and Business Development, Solidaridad Network Asia and Ipshita Habib, Manager, Resource Mobilisation and Advocacy, Solidaridad Network Asia were also present in the signing ceremony.
In collaboration with East West Seed Knowledge Transfer and AgroTec Limited, ‘Smart Farming Healthy Food’ envisions to develop climate-resilient smallholder vegetable-based cropping systems in the Barishal and
Chattogram Division. A key outcome of the project is that at least 15,375 hectares of farmland will be under climate-resilient and sustainable vegetable production. The project will also assist 100 young women and men (<35) to develop economic income-generating activities through the establishment of 100 marketing and collection centers for the provision of input and output marketing services.
Lastly, the project will result in the development and operationalization of a climate-smart Bangladesh GAP curriculum. The overall impact will be to make 25,000 smallholder vegetable farmers (of which 65% female) become more resilient to climate- and market-related risks and derive a sustained income from vegetable production and marketing.