[🇧🇩] Agriculture in Bangladesh

[Saif]

Govt expects no urea shortage for Aman season

BCIC chairman expects stock to exceed Aman demand of 6.5 lakh tonnes by June 30

www.thedailystar.net

Govt expects no urea shortage for Aman season

BCIC chairman expects stock to exceed Aman demand of 6.5 lakh tonnes by June 30

Sukanta Halder and Mohammad Suman

The government expects no shortage of urea fertiliser during the upcoming Aman season in July–August, with officials from relevant agencies saying existing stocks, domestic production and planned imports are sufficient to meet demand.

Bangladesh's urea requirement during the Aman season stands at 6.5 lakh tonnes, according to the Ministry of Agriculture. As of May 20, the country held 3.9 lakh tonnes in stock.

Md Fazlur Rahman, chairman of the Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC), said three urea factories are currently operational at full capacity, producing a combined 6,000 tonnes per day.

Local production from May to June is expected to reach 3-3.5 lakh tonnes.

He added that a total of 1.2 lakh tonnes has been confirmed for import, including 40,000 tonnes from Saudi Arabia and 80,000 tonnes from the UAE, with an additional 40,000 tonnes under negotiation with Saudi Arabia.

The BCIC chairman expects the total stock to exceed 6 lakh tonnes by June 30.

Officials stressed, however, the importance of preventing any artificial shortage.

Rahman also said that international urea prices have increased significantly, rising from about $460-$470 per tonne previously to around $730 per tonne currently.

PARTIAL PRODUCTION RECOVERY

Gas shortages, triggered by fears of supply disruptions amid escalating Middle East tensions, had forced five of the six major urea fertiliser factories to shut from March 4, severely affecting domestic production for nearly two months.

Three of the factories resumed operations from May 1 after gas supply improved, according to BCIC officials.

The three factories now operating are Karnaphuli Fertilizer Company Ltd (Kafco), Ghorashal Polash Fertilizer PLC and Shahjalal Fertilizer Company Ltd.

“About 247 million cubic feet of gas per day are required to run all six factories, including Kafco, at full capacity,” said Moniruzzaman, director (commercial, production and research) of BCIC, told The Daily Star.

“Currently, we are operating three factories with around 170 million cubic feet of gas supply daily,” he added.

Bangladesh's six factories have a combined capacity of around 7,100 tonnes per day, requiring about 247 million cubic feet of gas daily to run at full capacity.

The remaining three BCIC-run factories -- Chittagong Urea Fertilizer Company Limited, Jamuna Fertilizer Company Ltd and Ashuganj Fertilizer and Chemical Company Ltd -- remain shut due to inadequate gas supply.

Kafco is a multinational joint-venture fertiliser plant in which BCIC holds a major stake alongside companies from Japan, Denmark and the Netherlands, while the other five factories are fully operated under the corporation's management.

During the peak of the crisis in March, only Shahjalal Fertilizer remained operational.

Moniruzzaman informed that the corporation had requested the government to restore gas supply to the remaining three factories by June 1 to resume full-scale production.

A BCIC official, requesting anonymity, said the corporation had set a production target of 10 lakh tonnes of fertiliser for fiscal year 2025-26, but only around 6 lakh tonnes were produced in the first ten months through April, making the target increasingly difficult to achieve.

The gas crisis also had knock-on effects on DAP fertiliser production.

Alongside urea, Kafco and Chittagong Urea Fertilizer Company also produce ammonia, a key raw material for DAP fertiliser production. When the two factories shut in March, the ammonia supply dried up. As a result, the DAP Fertilizer Company Limited, the country's only DAP-producing plant, was forced to suspend production for nearly two weeks from April 18.

After Kafco resumed operations on May 1, ammonia supply restarted, allowing the DAP plant to resume production from May 8, said Robiul Alam Khan, deputy general manager (commercial) of the company.

Established in 2006, the DAP plant has two production units with a combined capacity of 800 tonnes per day. Output has fallen sharply in recent years due to repeated supply disruptions, from around 92,600 tonnes in FY24 to about 49,500 tonnes in FY25.

The total fertiliser demand in the country is around 68-69 lakh tonnes, of which the demand for urea is 26 lakh tonnes, according to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE).

BCIC annually produces around 10-15 lakh tonnes of fertiliser through its six urea factories and one DAP fertiliser plant, while the rest of the demand is met through imports.​

 

[Saif]

Surge in agro-employment at the expense of manufacturing!

Bangladesh's renewed dependence on agriculture for employment presents a paradox that should concern policymakers as much as it comforts them. In a country where agriculture has historically been the backbone of livelihoods, the sector's ability to absorb workers during economic uncertainty is unde

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Surge in agro-employment at the expense of manufacturing!

Wasi Ahmed

Published :
Jun 03, 2026 00:23
Updated :
Jun 03, 2026 00:23

Bangladesh's renewed dependence on agriculture for employment presents a paradox that should concern policymakers as much as it comforts them. In a country where agriculture has historically been the backbone of livelihoods, the sector's ability to absorb workers during economic uncertainty is undeniably reassuring. Yet the latest evidence suggests that this trend is not the result of a thriving rural transformation, but rather a symptom of stagnation in the manufacturing and services sectors -- the very engines that once drove Bangladesh's remarkable poverty reduction and economic ascent.

A recent World Bank study presented at a discussion meeting in the capital paints a sobering picture of the labour market between 2016 and 2024. Nearly seven out of every 10 new jobs created during the period emerged from agriculture, while manufacturing steadily lost momentum and shed workers. Most troubling is the gender dimension of this reversal. Women, who had gradually entered factories and urban services over the past two decades, bore the brunt of the setback. Around 1.1 million female jobs disappeared from industry and another 0.8 million from services, pushing many women back into low-productivity agricultural work.

This reversal represents more than a statistical shift; it signals a retreat from the structural transformation that once defined Bangladesh's development story. For decades, export-led industrialisation -- especially through the ready-made garment sector -- enabled millions of rural women to join the formal workforce, gain financial independence and contribute to household mobility. The migration of labour from farms to factories was not merely economic progress; it was social progress. The current re-concentration of labour in agriculture, therefore, raises difficult questions about the sustainability of Bangladesh's growth model.

Agriculture undoubtedly remains essential to the nation's economy and food security. However, when workers move into agriculture because better opportunities are unavailable elsewhere, the outcome is fundamentally different from a productive agricultural renaissance. The World Bank rightly notes that this shift towards low-productivity employment weakens labour income growth and slows poverty reduction. Low wages, seasonal instability and limited technological advancement continue to characterise much of the rural economy. As more workers crowd into the same sector without corresponding productivity gains, underemployment inevitably deepens.

The consequences are becoming visible. High inflation has eroded purchasing power across the country, particularly among low-income households whose wages have failed to keep pace with rising living costs. According to the study, an additional 1.4 million people were expected to fall into poverty in 2025, while the national poverty rate may rise from 18.7 per cent in 2022 to 21.4 per cent this year. Such projections serve as a stark reminder that economic resilience cannot be measured solely through GDP figures.

The broader economic outlook also reinforces these concerns. Bangladesh's projected GDP growth slowdown to 3.9 per cent in fiscal year 2025-26 reflects not only global uncertainties but also deep domestic structural weaknesses. At the heart of these weaknesses lies the inability of the private sector to generate sufficient employment for a rapidly expanding working-age population. As World Bank economist Dr Dhruv Sharma observed, improving the business environment is central to reversing this trend. Regulatory uncertainty, inconsistent taxation policies and barriers to firm expansion continue to discourage investment and job creation.

Indeed, one recurring theme throughout the discussions has been the lack of coherence in Bangladesh's economic incentives. The country's export success has long been concentrated within a narrow industrial base, particularly ready-made garments, while other sectors remain constrained by unequal tax treatment and excessive protectionism. Protective tariffs may shield domestic industries temporarily, but they also keep prices artificially high and discourage innovation and export diversification. An economy overly dependent on one sector inevitably becomes vulnerable to shocks, whether external or domestic.

The challenge becomes even more urgent when viewed through the lens of youth unemployment. With nearly 40 per cent of young people estimated to be unemployed, Bangladesh faces the risk of a demographic burden rather than a demographic dividend. A generation entering adulthood without meaningful employment opportunities may lose confidence not only in the economy but also in the institutions governing it.

The reflections shared by economists and business leaders at the Policy Research Institute (PRI) event underscore the need for a strategic reset. The future of the country lies in productivity, skills, innovation and institutional credibility. Emerging industries may require temporary state support, but such protection must come with clear sunset clauses and accountability mechanisms.

At the same time, restoring investor confidence remains critical. Concerns raised by business representatives regarding abrupt fiscal measures and inconsistent taxation policies highlight a deeper issue of policy unpredictability. Investors, whether domestic or foreign, require stability and transparency to commit long-term capital. Without investment, sustainable job creation will remain elusive.

Bangladesh's development journey over the past three decades has been remarkable precisely because it demonstrated how growth, employment and poverty reduction can reinforce one another. That virtuous cycle now appears under strain. Agriculture's capacity to absorb workers may provide temporary relief, but it cannot be a substitute for a vibrant manufacturing sector and dynamic services economy. The country's next phase of development will depend not on preserving old advantages, but on building new ones - through institutional reform, diversified industrial growth and a labour market capable of offering dignity, security and opportunity to its people.​