Agriculture Minister Dr. Muhammad Abdur Razzaque said that in order to survive the competition in the global market, the international standard of agricultural products must be maintained.
“All the obstacles and problems to the export of agricultural products will be identified and solved. Initiatives will be taken to expedite the accredited lab for quality control,” he added.
The agriculture minister was speaking as the chief guest at an online exchange of views with 'vegetable and fruit exporters' from the conference room of the ministry at the secretariat on Sunday.
Abdur Razzaque said, “the government's goal now is to make agriculture profitable by processing and commercializing it. For this, the export of agricultural products should be increased. We are thinking of setting up processing industries and providing more support to entrepreneurs. The government is giving utmost importance to the domestic as well as international marketing of the agricultural products . Therefore, those who are directly involved in exports and working for quality development will be given all assistance.’
‘Agriculture is very important in Bangladesh as it ensures food security of people and supplies raw materials for various industries as well. There is a lot of potential for export of the processed products that we are getting by supplying this raw material. Yet our exports are mostly limited to readymade garments.At the same time agriculture is a promising sector. If we can process and ensure safe vegetable and fruits, we will be able to export agricultural products to the international market,’ he added.
Speakers at the meeting expressed their views on what should be done for the export of agricultural products. The Agriculture Minister listened to the views and experiences of various stakeholders. He suggested that another meeting between the agencies be held soon to discuss how the Ministry could co-operate in considering their recommendations.
The meeting was chaired by Md. Mesbahul Islam, Senior Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture. Additional Secretary (Extension) of the Ministry Md. Hasanuzzaman Kallol, Additional Secretary (Research) Kamala Ranjan Das, Additional Secretary (PPC) Md Ruhul Amin, Director General of the Department of Agriculture Extension Md. Asadullah, Chairman of Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation Dr. Amitabh Sarkar, Director General of the Department of Agricultural Marketing, Yusuf, executive chairman of the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council Sheikh Mohammad Bakhtiyar also spoke at the meeting.
