Bangladesh is one of 22 countries from Asia and the Pacific participating in a regional event, held in Dhaka on Thursday, to strengthen one special agricultural product from each country.
Bangladesh, which is promoting jackfruit, is taking the lead as the region’s demonstration project for the One Country One Priority Product (OCOP) initiative by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Other regional countries involved are Bhutan, Cambodia, China, Cook Islands, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Laos, Mongolia, Nauru, Nepal, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tonga, Vanuatu, and Viet Nam.
Representatives from each country gathered at an international hotel in Dhaka for the two-day event, hosted by FAO, where they will discuss sustainable development projects for their‘special agricultural products’, which range from taro root vegetables to tea, turmeric, vanilla, millet, and cocoa.
In Asia and the Pacific, producing and promoting highly-valued and country-specific foods is gaining momentum for domestic and foreign consumption. While many foods and agricultural products are native to many countries around the world, in most nations there is at least one product in particular that stands out.
FAO launched a project earlier this year to support small-scale jackfruit farmers and entrepreneurs in Bangladesh. Robert D. Simpson, FAO Representative in Bangladesh, said: “This event is a great opportunity to further promote Bangladesh’s national fruit.
There is strong and growing demand for jackfruit globally and FAO is assisting producers to exploit this potential.”
Jackfruit is cultivated all over the country. Dhaka accounts for a quarter of national production. Other leading jackfruit growing districts are Gazipur, Tangail, Mymensingh, Khustia, Rangamati, Khagrachari and Narsingdi. The majority of jackfruit is cultivated on family farms and women are involved in production and processing.
The Government of Bangladesh selected jackfruit under the OCOP initiative. Bangladesh was selected as one of the first five demonstration countries, along with Egypt, Malawi, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uzbekistan.
