IFPRI and the Ministry of Agriculture join hands to enhance agricultural mechanization in Bangladesh 

Summary:

• The Bangladesh Government prioritizes mechanization to make agriculture more efficient and to enhance productivity and food security.
• IFPRI and CGIAR, with the support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, are conducting policy research to address key challenges impeding agricultural mechanization in Bangladesh.
• The research aims to investigate barriers to mechanization and to evaluate agricultural mechanization's effects on productivity, income, and labor allocation, as well as policy effectiveness, with the goal of enhancing government support programs.
• A Technical Advisory Committee has been formed within the Ministry of Agriculture to facilitate IFPRI’s policy research on farm mechanization and ensure the research remains responsive to and aligned with Bangladesh’s policy priorities. The first meeting was held in February 2024 to discuss the research and next steps.

Introduction 

Mechanization is critical in boosting agricultural productivity and it profoundly impacts the agricultural landscape in Bangladesh. In response to a high-level request from the Ministry of Agriculture, IFPRI is conducting policy research that aims to enhance agricultural mechanization in the country. IFPRI’s research is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

To support the research process, IFPRI has taken concerted steps to establish a Technical Advisory Committee within the Ministry of Agriculture. Specifically, the purpose of this Committee is to ensure government involvement from the design stage, facilitate efficient feedback, and ensure that the research remains responsive and aligned with policy priorities, thereby increasing the likelihood of policy uptake and impact.

Dr. M. Mehrab Bakhtiar, IFPRI Research Fellow and the principal investigator of the research, reinforced the importance of bridging the research-policy gap: “IFPRI and CGIAR place a strong emphasis on collaborating closely with the government from the design stage of research projects to ensure that the resulting findings are not only relevant but also actionable for the government's policies and programs."

On February 28, 2024, the Ministry of Agriculture and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) jointly organized the inaugural meeting of the Technical Advisory Committee to facilitate IFPRI’s policy research on agricultural mechanization. Approximately 20 representatives participated, including from agencies within the Ministry of Agriculture, such as the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC), and the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), Agricultural Policy Support Unit (APSU); as well as from IFPRI and CIMMYT.

Meeting Summary

As the meeting chair, Dr. Md. Mahmudur Rahman, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture provided his introductory remarks. He highlighted the significance of mechanization in bolstering agricultural productivity and commended IFPRI’s initiative in undertaking this research.

Thereafter, Dr. Akhter Ahmed, Country Representative, IFPRI-Bangladesh took stock of IFPRI’s research in Bangladesh spanning four decades, much of which was undertaken in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture. Dr. Ahmed’s remarks set the stage for Dr. Ruhul Amin Talukder, Senior Policy Advisor, IFPRI to provide context on the challenges in and opportunities for agricultural mechanization research in Bangladesh.

Next, IFPRI Research Fellows Dr. Bakhtiar and Dr. Ben Belton gave an overview of the proposed research objectives and methodology. IFPRI’s collaborative research with other CGIAR centers such as CIMMYT aims to address core challenges hindering mechanization, such as inefficiencies in the machineries rental market (e.g., barrier to entry as a machine service provider due to low access to formal finance), lack of awareness among smallholder farmers, fragmented landholdings, and the need for improved operator training. IFPRI will evaluate the impact of mechanization on factors such as productivity, income, and labor allocation, and identify evidence-based improvements for optimizing mechanization support programs and interventions. IFPRI’s research plans to include nationwide surveys, policy reviews, and interviews to inform evidence-based policymaking.

Key Recommendations and Looking Ahead

The Technical Advisory Committee provided detailed feedback on IFPRI’s proposed research activities, ranging from sampling methods, opportunities to expand the research scope to cover non-rice crops, and expanding the Committee to include members from the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, NBR and Bangladesh Bank. During the meeting, the Technical Advisory Committee agreed to provide the researchers access to relevant data from the DAE and the private sector.

Overall, the Technical Advisory Committee represents a valuable platform for stakeholders to exchange ideas and chart a course towards a mechanized agricultural future for Bangladesh. Moving forward, IFPRI and CGIAR remain committed to aligning closely with the Technical Advisory Committee to produce actionable insights for evidence-based policymaking, contributing to the Ministry's vision of sustainable agricultural development in Bangladesh.

Resources:

• Presentation, “IFPRI’s policy research on agricultural mechanization” (PDF, 2 MB)
• Blog, “IFPRI-CGIAR workshop seeks to enhance agrifood value chains and farm mechanization in Bangladesh” (feat. the full program video, IFPRI-Bangladesh brochure on agrifood value chains, and more)
• Approved meeting minutes, 1st Technical Advisory Committee Meeting (PDF, 2 MB)

Disclaimer:

This blog is based on research funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The findings and conclusions contained within are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect positions or policies of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. For more information on the Climate Change x Agriculture investment, please visit the project page on the IFPRI-Bangladesh microsite.

Photo Credit (Social Media Feature Photo): CIMMYT/CSISA-MEA

Blog contributors: Razin Kabir, Md. Aminul Karim, Raisa Shamma, and Julie Ghostlaw