Strategies for the development of sustainable agriculture in Bangladesh

Graduation date: 1996The adoption of modem agricultural technologies in Bangladesh increases\ud overall agricultural productivity and income primarily through the increase in cereal\ud crop production. It, however, impedes the productivity of several other minor crops\ud and fishes, widens the distribution of income between the rich and the poor, exploits\ud resources and obstructs the sustainability of agricultural production. This study,\ud therefore, formulates strategies to achieve sustainable agricultural production in\ud Bangladesh. Specifically, the study (1) empirically estimates the effects of modem\ud technologies on the sustainability of agricultural production and on the distribution of\ud income between the rich and the poor, and (2) identifies policy variables responsible\ud for the development of sustainable agriculture in Bangladesh.\ud The study uses index number theory and derives the technological change\ud index and the sustainability index as measures of technological progress and\ud sustainability of the agricultural sector. Empirical estimates of such indices are made\ud based on primary and secondary information collected from the Mymensingh region,\ud north-central part of Bangladesh. Results reveal that the agricultural sector of the\ud region has exhibited an overall technological progress during the past two decades but\ud has not been sustainable. Households with lower income have enjoyed relatively less\ud technological progress compared to those with higher income. Lower income\ud households are less likely to achieve sustainability under current policy trajectory,\ud implying that the increased adoption of modern technologies widens the distribution of\ud income and obstructs the sustainability of agricultural production.\ud Implementing alternative technological and economic policies, Bangladesh\ud agriculture can be guided toward a sustainable agriculture. Generation of alternative\ud rural employment for surplus labor; emphasis on production sectors that demand less\ud land but more labor, i.e., poultry production; assurance of stable and secured market\ud prices for agricultural products; and generation of easily adoptable technologies for\ud small farms are some promising policy objectives for the development of sustainable\ud agriculture in Bangladesh