The Minister of Agriculture called on Germany to invest and cooperate in increasing the export of agricultural products. Md. Abdur Razzak.
He made the call at a virtual conference titled 'Opportunities for Export and Trade of Agricultural Products of Bangladesh' on Thursday afternoon. The conference was organized by the Bangladesh Embassy in Germany and the German Agribusiness Alliance.
Noting that Bangladesh has a very favorable investment climate, the Chief Guest said that there are many opportunities and possibilities to further enhance the ongoing trade relations between Bangladesh and Germany. Especially in the field of agriculture, Germany has a lot of opportunities for investment and cooperation in the production of quality agricultural products, agro-processing, agricultural mechanization, value chain and building the necessary infrastructure for export. Bangladesh is currently producing quality mangoes, pineapples, litchis, guavas, bananas and other fruits and various types of fresh vegetables. To increase exports of these products, Germany can provide technical assistance, manpower training, setting up labs and testing facilities, and invest and cooperate in modern pack houses and food processing.
The Agriculture Minister further said that the Government of Bangladesh has already approved the Gap (GAP) policy to increase the export of agricultural products in compliance with international standards. In addition, steps have been taken to set up state-of-the-art pack houses and accreditation laboratories. As a result, the export of Bangladeshi agricultural products to the European Union market including Germany has the potential to increase manifold. To take advantage of this opportunity, all concerned must take the necessary initiative and take appropriate steps.
Bangladesh Ambassador to Germany at the conference. Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, Agriculture Secretary. Mesbahul Islam, Deputy Chief of Mission of the German Embassy in Dhaka Constanza Zehringer, BARC Executive Chairman. Sheikh Md. Bakhtiyar, Jens Oding of the German Agribusiness Alliance, Md. Commercial Counselor of the Bangladesh Embassy in Berlin. Saiful Islam, CEO / President of Global Gap (GAP) Christian Mueller, USAID Bangladesh's Aniruddha Roy spoke.
In addition, representatives of German Agribusiness Alliance, Global Gap, USAID, BAPA, Fresh Fruits and Vegetables Exporters Association of Bangladesh were present at the conference.
Global Gap and USAID Bangladesh presented 3 papers in this virtual conference. It highlights how safe food can be produced and marketed in accordance with the Gap Policy. In addition, for export to other EU countries, including Germany, emphasis is placed on maintaining the quality of agricultural products in accordance with international standards and obtaining recognized certificates.
