Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF) and CAB International will work jointly to make Bangladesh’s agricultural system more effective and sustainable by promoting safe food production, reducing farmers’ production costs, and addressing climate and environmental risks. To this end, the two institutions today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) titled ‘Up-scaling of Sustainable Agroecological Farming in Bangladesh.’ On behalf of PKSF, the MoU was signed by its Deputy Managing Director, Dr. Akond Mohammad Rafiqul Islam, while Dr. Vinod Pandit, Regional Director, South Asia, signed on behalf of CAB International.

Speaking as the chair of the event, PKSF Managing Director Md Fazlul Kader emphasized the need to advance Bangladesh’s agriculture sector through sustainable and market-driven solutions. He stressed the importance of promoting science-based agriculture and agroecological farming, while equipping farmers with the skills needed to adopt modern and environmentally friendly farming practices.  

He also highlighted the potential for developing microenterprises among local farmers to produce bio-pesticides, which could reduce farmers’ production costs and minimize risks to the environment and public health, while accelerating the transition towards safer food production.  

Dr. Vinod Pandit, Regional Director for South Asia at CAB International, said the key objective is to reduce the use of harmful pesticides and promote safer biological pest-control solutions through training and enhanced technical capacity.

He stated the initiative would also focus on raising awareness among stakeholders across the agricultural sector, strengthening digital data management, and developing market-based partnerships to reduce farmers’ production costs and promote environmentally friendly and sustainable agriculture.

Under the MoU, the technical expertise of CAB International’s PlantwisePlus program will be combined with PKSF’s implementation capacity and extensive grassroots network. This collaboration is expected to strengthen the skills and capacities of smallholder and marginal farmers and support the wider adoption of sustainable agroecological farming practices.

Dr. Saleh Ahmed, Country Representative of CAB International in Bangladesh, also spoke at the event.