Mr. M Monir Hussain, President
DCfB, Lyn Brown MP for West Ham North, Jim Fitzpatrick MP, Rushnara Ali MP and
other respected guests, good evening to you.
I feel privileged to be here at
the House of Commons as the Guest of Honour.
Bangladesh is a country where
millions of people lead an agrarian livelihood against the severe adversities
of nature. Farmers make up about 80% of the population in Bangladesh. Whereas television is
mostly regarded as an entertainment-box, I, however, used it as a tool for development
through which farmers are informed how to tackle diverse difficulties to become
successful.
Media contributed its greater
role to bring the most significant change in the farming sector of Bangladesh. Being
a part of the meaningful media operation has always been a unique experience
for me.
It’s been almost three decades
that I have spent most of my time among farmers, in the greenery of Bangladesh. Put
together farmers as a strong community who can now raise their voice for their demands,
directly to the policymakers. I tried my level best to build a platform for them-
“Agriculture budget…farmers’ budget”, “Farmers’ health service”, “Farmers’ cooperative”,
“Farm-labour rights”, “Farmers’ Digital Access” are some examples.
Honourable Ladies & Gentlemen,
Many non-resident Bangladeshis
are working in abroad and UK
is no different.
UK vegetables are very costly
because most of the vegetables are imported. Bangladesh has great potentials in
vegetable production, as we have fertile land, low labour cost and perfect
weather. If British and British-Bangladeshi investors support the sector, then
it could minimize the vegetable price and could also open a huge business
opportunity. UK
government could also support Bangladeshis for organic farming here so that
they can get support to take lease of lands to produce abundant crops.
In Oman,
Egypt and USA, I have
seen Bangladeshi farmers producing and marketing vegetables so frequently. Specially
in Oman,
I have witnessed a huge vegetable market, completely run by Bangladeshis with
their own produce. The municipal corporation of the Omani government has built
the market place only for Bangladeshis with all modern facilities. I’m sure optimistic
policy interventions would ensure cost-friendly vegetable market, here as well.
Respectable Ladies & Gentlemen,
Climate change is not a distant possibility but a reality
that has multi-dimensional effects.
According to DFID, Bangladesh
received a total of £148.8m during 2009-2010. The UK is providing
assistance of £75m for 2009-2013 to support disaster risk reduction and
strengthen climate change adaptation and mitigation. There are people who are
already migrating from coastal areas to Dhaka because
of the sea-level rise. UK
assistance could provide rehabilitation of the displaced people.
Cyclone shelter with separate floors to protect livestock during disasters,
prove to be more useful. These could also be used as common community assets
throughout the years to generate livelihood activities in the cyclone-affected
areas.
UK support could make warning systems ‘accessible
and easy to understand’ for people at risk of flood and cyclones. It could also
provide training on climate resilient livelihoods, increase crop production and
prevent intrusion of saline water into the cultivating fields.
Before making a funding scheme,
it’s very significant to sort out how well farmers’ causes will be evaluated.
If we say, we are willing to develop our agricultural sector through
revolutionary farm-technologies, then their financial support has to be ensured
at first.
Climate change is the result of
our desires and I think it’d be better curbing it right now. Farmers who faced
severe consequences of climate change, they should be compensated.
Thank you all for your patient
listening. It’s been really wonderful to be present here at this lively event.
