US ‘Feed the Future’ launches livestock project in Bangladesh

The US government has launched a livestock project in south-western Bangladesh as part of its global ‘Feed the Future’ initiative.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 6 Dec 2015, 12:45 PM
Updated : 6 Dec 2015, 02:19 PM

Fisheries and Livestock Minister Muhammed Sayedul Hoque and US Ambassador to Bangladesh Marcia Bernicat on Sunday launched the project in Jessore where a large number of people depend on agriculture and farming.

The project will supply products across Bangladesh.

Known as “Feed the Future Livestock Production for Improved Nutrition”, the project aims to ensure nutritious food for children. Bangladesh is currently home to some of the most malnourished children in the world.

The latest Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey shows that 36 percent of children under the age of 5 in the country are subject to stunted growth. That is a clear sign of chronic malnutrition.

The ‘Feed the Future’ programme is the US government's global hunger and food security initiative.

Ambassador Bernicat, speaking on the occasion, said the project would entail working with dairy farmers in Jessore and across a total of 20 districts in southern Bangladesh.

The farmers will be taught new skills, whether in improving the quality of feed to beef up their cattle or in developing techniques to breed more productive dairy cows.

“As a result, farmers in Bangladesh stand to raise larger, healthier cattle to operate dairy farms more efficiently and to earn more money in the process,” she said.

“Just as importantly, many more young children and their families will have greater access to nutritious, high-quality dairy and meat products. It is a ‘win-win’ for everybody,” the ambassador said.