Feed the Future worked in 20 districts in the Southern Delta region.
Number of people living in Feed the Future target regions in Bangladesh (FTF ZOI Survey, 2018)
Annual GDP growth; agriculture accounts for 12.7 percent of added value (World Bank, 2019)
Percentage of population living in rural Bangladesh (World Bank, 2019)
Percentage of stunted children under the age of 5 in Feed the Future target regions in Bangladesh (FTF ZOI Survey, 2018)
Percentage of people living in poverty in Feed the Future target regions in 2018 (FTF ZOI Survey, 2018)
Producers using new technologies and practices with Feed the Future’s help in FY21
Annual agricultural sales generated by Bangladeshi farms and firms reached by Feed the Future in FY21
Children under 5 reached with nutrition help in fiscal year FY21
Hectares tended with improved technologies or management practices in FY21
estimated reduction in the prevalence of stunting in children under the age of 5 in the areas where Feed the Future has worked since 2011
Bangladesh is the world’s most densely populated country, with 161 million people living in a land area roughly the size of Iowa. Poverty, lack of access to agricultural land and poor eating habits contribute to some of the highest rates of undernutrition and child stunting in the world. In addition to population growth, urbanization and natural resource depletion have led to the degradation of Bangladesh’s land and bodies of water, which poses a great threat to its agriculture sector. In Bangladesh, Feed the Future targets areas vulnerable to water scarcity, rising sea levels, extreme shocks and changing weather patterns to maximize impact and strengthen resilience. Feed the Future integrates agriculture and nutrition investments to enhance cognitive and physical development, increase economic productivity, strengthen resilience and advance global development. For more information, please view the Nutrition Priority Countries.
In alignment with the government of Bangladesh’s priorities, Feed the Future focuses on boosting rice production while helping farmers diversify their production with higher-value, nutrient-dense commodities such as horticulture and fish. In 2021, Feed the Future helped smallholder farmers access over $12.8 million in agriculture-related financing. As a result of these efforts, the value of annual sales of producers and firms was over $694 million.
For example, in collaboration with Cornell University and other partners, Feed the Future introduced the Bt eggplant variety in Bangladesh, which helped to reduce the use of toxic pesticides by 37.5 percent. Farmers growing the Bt eggplant variety also saw a 51 percent increase in yields and a 128 percent increase in net revenue.
Empowering women benefits both families and communities and is an important way to increase resilience in Bangladesh. In collaboration with the government of Bangladesh, Feed the Future is increasing women’s access to agriculture and nutrition training, seeds and fertilizer, farming technology and child care. These efforts aim to reduce food insecurity, undernutrition and household-level gender inequalities.
In addition, as a result by 2018:
Private sector engagement is another major focus in Bangladesh. By partnering with private companies, Feed the Future conducted training for sunflower, mung bean, maize, sesame and aquaculture farmers. In 2020, Feed the Future’s partnerships with private companies mobilized over $2.9 million to develop new technologies in aquaculture, crops and livestock sectors. As a result, distribution networks for environment-friendly agricultural inputs were strengthened, agricultural machinery services were expanded and crop diversification was enhanced.
These results reflect data from the U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of the Treasury (through the International Fund for Agricultural Development and Global Agriculture and Food Security Program), reported into Feed the Future’s central monitoring system for fiscal year 2020 (FY20). Impact data for poverty statistics come from a 2018 population-based survey by the International Food Policy Research Institute. Impact data for stunting statistics are derived from the 2014 Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey. Impact data for women’s empowerment come from the Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (WEAI) for 2018. For more information on the indicators above, please view the Feed the Future Indicator Handbook. All dollar amounts are listed in U.S. dollars.
Feed the Future supports the following programs, partnerships and organizations in Bangladesh.
May 31, 2018
March 8, 2018
Created November 18, 2018
May 27, 2015
“There are so many things to learn from the app [...] I had forgotten some of the information provided during the training modules. Now I can follow those production methods by reading them on the app. I can also call the SAFETI staff if I need any further help.”
Seema Mondal, Shrimp and Carp Farmer & SAFETI App User
