A Farmers’ Market, which was launched in the area under Ward No. 54 of Gazipur City Corporation (GCC) a year ago but closed later due to some complications, has been reopened.
The area-based Farmers’ Market, a weekly makeshift marketplace that was introduced to ensure the supply of fresh food items to the consumers at fair prices, was inaugurated in September 20222 in front of Safiuddin Sarker Academy & College at Tongi in Gazipur.
The Farmers’ Market was relaunched on Friday (October 6, 2023) under the ‘Dhaka Food System Project’ of Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations. Newly elected councilor of Ward No. 54 of GCC Alhaj Billal Hossain Mollah has reopened the market in consideration of the demand for safe food of the local residents. It is the first weekly marketplace in Gazipur city under the project. The area-based weekly Farmers’ Market had been inaugurated in the GCC area with the joint efforts of Work for a Better Bangladesh (WBB) Trust, Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), GCC and FAO in collaboration with the Embassy of the Netherlands. GCC councilor Alhaj Md. Billal Hossain Mollah was present at the relaunching ceremony as the chief guest. Moderated by senior project manager of WBB Trust Ziaur Rahman, the event was addressed, among others, by Principal of Safiuddin Sarker Academy and College Md. Moniruzzaman, director of WBB Trust Gaous Pearee, upazila agriculture officer of Gazipur DAE Md. Hasibul Hasan, deputy assistant agriculture Officer of Pubail Shahina Sultana, and team leader of Dhaka Food System Project Pedro Andres Garzon Delvo.
Speaking at the event, Pedro Andres Garzon Delvo said, “By establishing Farmers’ Markets under Dhaka Food System Project, we have tried to establish a link between villages and cities so that the urban consumers can get safe food and marginal farmers are getting profit.
Our objective is to ensure the development of Dhaka's food management through 16 farmers’ markets. We are working with local government departments to make these markets sustainable.”
Md. Hasibul Hasan said that a farmer's market was established in the area of GCC’s Ward No. 54 in Tongi. However, the market did not sustain due to lack of a sound supply-chain. For this reason, the market has again been launched by involving safe food producers from Bhadun in Pubail, he added.
He further said, “We appreciate the efforts of the FAO and WBB Trust to improve urban food management by continuing market activities after the end of the project.”
In her speech, Gaous Pearee said, “Currently our children and teenagers are leaning towards packaged food, which is creating risks for health and environment. On the other hand, city dwellers don’t feel safe buying vegetables due to fear of the presence of chemicals in vegetables. The Farmers’ Market is a timely initiative to change this situation. The involvement of ward councilors and local residents is necessary for the smooth running of the market.”
Rights activists at the event said that such a makeshift market in urban area will play a vital role in ensuring better return for marginal farmers.
They also said that Bangladesh currently ranks third in producing vegetables. However, the government is now trying to ensure safe vegetables as well as quantity of production. Against this backdrop, the Farmers’ Market has been relaunched in the GCC area.
