There is no risk of famine in Bangladesh at the moment as 1.6 million tons of food are in stock, Agriculture Minister Dr Abdur Razzaque said on Tuesday.
“We are trying our best to reduce the price of essential commodities and the government has cut import duty to stabilize the rice market. Although the prices of some daily essentials are rising, there is no risk of a famine,” he said while talking to reporters at a press briefing at the Secretariat.
A number of initiatives have been taken by the government to tackle a possible food crisis, and Tk28,000 crore is being given as subsidies for the fertilizer sector, he added.
The minister also held out the assurance that there will be no possibility of a rice price hike as plenty of rice and wheat is in stock.
Crop production in several countries was hit hard by untimely and heavy rains this year, including in Bangladesh and neighbouring India. Global food stocks were also hampered by the outbreak of war in Ukraine in February, as the European country was one of the world’s top wheat exporters.