The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has been asked by Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus to create a social business fund to assist women, young farmers, food processors, and agricultural entrepreneurs in Bangladesh.
According to the Chief Adviser’s Press Wing, Professor Yunus made the suggestion while meeting with IFAD President Alvaro Lario on the fringes of the World Food Forum in Rome, Italy, on Sunday (Rome Time).
“I encourage you to create a social business fund,” said Professor Yunus.
“Such a fund would address social issues including healthcare for poor and promote entrepreneurship among youth, farmers, women, and those involved in the fishing industry,” he added.
During the meeting, the two leaders discussed a range of strategic issues, including support for launching Bangladesh’s deep-sea fishing industry, expanding exports of mangoes and jackfruit, promoting climate-resilient agricultural entrepreneurship, and assisting buffalo farmers in producing dairy products such as mozzarella cheese.
The IFAD President was invited by Professor Yunus to travel to Bangladesh with a team to investigate possible joint ventures in technology, social business, and agriculture.
President Lario responded by stating that IFAD is very interested in assisting social business projects and growing its partnership with the private sector in Bangladesh.
He mentioned that around half a dozen agricultural initiatives in the nation are presently being funded by IFAD.
Bangladesh’s need for technological assistance and investment in fruit processing, cold storage, warehousing, and large-scale exports of tropical fruits like mangoes and jackfruit was also underlined by the Chief Adviser.
“We’ve begun exporting mangoes, but the volume is still small. China has expressed interest in importing big quantities of both mangoes and jackfruit from Bangladesh,” he said. Fisheries and Livestock Adviser Farida Akhter also attended the meeting and highlighted how Bangladeshi women dairy farmers are producing mozzarella cheese from buffalo milk.
She requested IFAD’s support to scale up cheese and other dairy production in the country.
Discussing the untapped potential of the Bay of Bengal’s deep-sea fishing industry, Professor Yunus noted that most Bangladeshi fishermen operate only in shallow waters due to a lack of investment and technological know-how.
“We don’t yet dare to go into deep-sea fishing. IFAD can support this sector through funding and technology sharing,” he said.
Since its engagement in Bangladesh began in 1978, IFAD has partnered on 37 projects with a combined value of US$ 4.26 billion, of which US$ 1.13 billion was directly financed by IFAD.
Currently, six projects worth US$ 412 million are underway in Bangladesh, with one additional project in the pipeline.
Professor Yunus reached Rome around 5pm on Sunday (Rome Time) to attend the World Food Forum, organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
He is scheduled to deliver a keynote speech at the event and meet with high-level dignitaries.
Food Adviser Ali Imam Majumder, SDG Coordinator and Senior Secretary Lamiya Morshed, and Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam and IFAD Associate Vice-President Donal Brown were also present at the meeting.
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