If Bangladesh is to continue its growth trajectory, then one of the key areas it must address is food security and farming while mitigating the adverse effects of climate change.
With the world more volatile than ever and the shocks felt throughout the world, including Bangladesh which continues to experience soaring food prices, it is imperative that we prioritize efficient farming practices to grow more of our food and address our agricultural needs.
Climate change is also not slowing down, and therefore, any new plans we chalk up must also keep in mind the unavoidable devastation that climate change will continue to bring.
To that end, the new Global South Hub Asia initiative shows great promise; it will focus on creating platforms for partners across the science, technology and innovation ecosystem and enhance science communication about climate change, food, and nutrition security.
The hub also seeks to create biosafety and governance frameworks that ease the deployment of agricultural technologies to increase food availability and build resilient food systems
It is important we see more and more of such collaborative efforts among nations who are truly in this predicament together. Climate change and resulting food insecurity disproportionately affects nations of the Global South, and therefore it is important for nations in this region to share best practices amongst each other to mitigate the effects as best as possible.
For Bangladesh, which intends to become a “smart” nation in less than two decades, it must be smart with its agricultural practices and embrace science and technological best practices within the sector to ensure that Smart Bangladesh is our reality and smart agriculture is a foundational piece.
