Bayer CropScience Ltd. BD has introduced a new global initiative styled ‘Better Farms, Better Lives’ to support smallholder farmers who are facing challenges due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic,
Bayer will extend support to some 2 million (20 lakh) smallholder farmers in Asia, Africa and Latin America, with free Better Life Farming care packages. These packages will be tailored to farmers’ local needs and will include a combination of Bayer’s hybrid seeds, crop protection products, personal protective equipment and safety & training materials.
In Bangladesh, the initiative will support 1,00,000 smallholder farmers across 51 districts and 200 Upazillas, spanning key crops such as rice and vegetables. Each smallholder farmer will receive one package (free of cost) containing hybrid seeds of the crops cultivated in their region.
In addition, Bayer will handhold farmers from sowing to harvest with advisory on crop, disease & pest management and help improve market access for their produce. Besides distribution of packages, Bayer will provide training to farmers to improve capacity building on the use of modern agricultural technologies.
The free distribution of Bayer’s hybrid rice seeds to smallholder farmers was kicked off in the Dhanbari upazilla of Tangail district, through a video conference with Dr. Muhammad Abdur Razzaque, Minister of Agriculture.
The virtual event was also attended by Peter Fahrenholtz, German Ambassador to Bangladesh, M Nasirumazzan, Secretary of Agriculture, D. Narain, Senior Bayer Representative South Asia, Simon-Thorsten Wiebusch COO CropScience division for India-Bangladesh Sri Lanka and Srinivasa Karavadi, MD Bayer Bangladesh along with officials from the Government of Bangladesh and the expert panel on Bangladesh Agriculture.
“Smallholder farmers play a crucial role in ensuring food security for Bangladesh, but the ongoing Covid-19 situation has impacted their ability to grow sufficient food for their families and communities. Lockdowns and restrictions on movement have impacted access to seeds, crop protection inputs and labor,” said Zahidul Islam, Country Commercial Lead & Executive Director for Bayer CropScience Limited, Bangladesh.
“Bayer’s ‘Better Farms, Better Lives’ initiative will provide immediate additional support to smallholder farmers with access to agri-inputs and advisory. It will also strengthen the livelihoods of smallholder communities most impacted by Covid-19. Our long-term aim is to help smallholder farmers achieve higher crop yields and use their farms as a source of sustainable income rather than just a means to survive,” added Zahidul Islam.
Bayer will distribute these care packages with support from the local Department of Agriculture Extension. At a later stage, Bayer will conduct third-party impact assessment studies to evaluate the value created through this initiative in terms of food security and livelihood support.
