The allocation of the agriculture budget holds significant importance in sustaining the remarkable progress achieved by country’s agricultural sector. By attaining self-sufficiency in food production, Bangladesh is already making strides toward fulfilling Vision 2041. Despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and global crises, the agricultural sector in Bangladesh has continued to flourish. This sustained success has positioned Bangladesh as a global leader in various agricultural products, such as becoming the highest producer of Hilsa, the second-largest producer of fish and jute, the third-largest producer of rice, onion and vegetables, the fourth-largest producer of tea and goat, the seventh highest producer of potato, mango, and goat meat.
The national parliament approved the budget of FY2023-24 on 26 June 2023. In the budget for the FY2023-24, an allocation of BDT 43,700 crore, accounting for 5.7 per cent of the total budget, has been made for the agriculture sector. As customary, this budget includes provisions for subsidies to ensure affordable fertilisers, seeds, irrigation facilities, and other essential materials for farmers. The subsidy allocation amounts to BDT 17,533 crore.
Furthermore, several ongoing and new projects focused on agriculture are planned to be initiated in this fiscal year. The annual development programme has allocated BDT 16,336 crore for the agriculture sector this year. These programmes primarily aim to enhance production and productivity, to diversify agricultural products, to provide incentives and support for farmers, to promote conservation and processing of agricultural products, to facilitate agricultural research and innovation, to address climate change effects, to implement smart agricultural practices, to ensure food storage and distribution, to conserve native fish species, and to modernise the fisheries and livestock sectors.
Publication Period: June 2023