Adnan Dairy Farm in Dakshinpara of Bera Municipality in Pabna has 11 cows. Out of those, five cows are giving milk regularly. Abdul Awal, owner of the farm, said that he spends Tk 400 per day on food for each of the cows.
Each of the cows gives seven to eight liters of milk daily on average. The milk is being sold at Tk 50 to Tk 55 per litre. Daily expenses of nurturing cattle have now gone beyond his limit.
But cows milk is being sold in Dhaka at Tk 120 per litre. The difference of milk price in only 150 kilometers is about Tk 70 per litre. Due to this difference of prices, the farmers are facing losses while buyers have to pay higher price than usual. Not only milk, but also there are huge gaps of price for the eggs, chicken, beef, meat and fish.
According to the experts, the difference of price in rural and urban areas is happening due to unfair market management.
Renowned Economist Quazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad told the Daily Observer, "It is not possible to manage the fair market due to some syndicates. Extortion on the streets should be stopped. Traders should stop hoarding. If the law is not enforced, the market will not be fair. Due to lack of a fair market system the prices of goods are not decreasing. Law enforcement in other countries has brought prices down. Therefore, laws must also be applied.
He urged the government to come forward with sincerity to ensure fair market management.
Meanwhile, the Livestock and Dairy Development project has created 5,500 producer groups for fair market management.
LDDP Director Md Abdur Rahim said that there is a plan to create another 1,000 producer groups of more dairy producers across the country to ensure fair market management system and development of dairy farmers.
He said, farmers are being trained through PG Groups and Farmers Field School. An important part of the training is the business plan.
He said, "Farmers are learning a lot of issues in the dairy sector. They know how to do marketing, revenue generation. By doing this, the marketers techniques are known. They are being trained on the value chain. A group consists of 40 members. Due to this, their financial capacity is increasing. They are saving from Tk100 to Tk 500 per month."
It is known that the government has opened a bank account with Tk 10,000.
According to sources, the LDDP is scheduled to be implemented in 466 upazilas of 12 districts of the country (excluding three districts in hill tracts) from 2019 to October 2025. The Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock has started the implementation of a project titled "The Livestock and Dairy Development Project (LDDP)" under the Directorate of Livestock with funding from the World Bank.
The original cost of the project was Tk 4,280.36 crore and the implementation period was from January 2019 to December 2023. In the revised proposal, the cost of the project has been increased from Tk 1,095 crore to Tk 5,389.92 crore. And the period has been extended by 22 months till October 2025.
Mostaque Khan, President, Birhatabo Dairy Producer Group told the Daily Observer, "At present, the prices of milk at Rupganj in Narayanganj Tk 70 to Tk 80 per litre. But in Dhaka, one litre of milk is selling at Tk 120.
The difference in milk price per litre is Tk 40 to Tk 50 at a distance of just 30 kilometers. If we had had fair market management, we would have got a higher price for milk."
He said, "Farmers are facing a lot of losses due to absence of fair market management. Many times we have to sell milk and other products at a loss."
The main cow milk producing areas of the country are formed with Bera, Santhia, Faridpur, Bhangura, Chatmohar and Shahjadpur, Ullapara, Chauhali, Tarash upazilas of Sirajganj. About 1.5 million people here are involved in the dairy industry.
According to the Livestock Office, more than 25,000 farms in this area produce about 1 million litres of cow milk every day. From this area, public and private organizations collect and process liquid milk and sell it in the open market across the country.
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Swedens Crown Princess Victoria to visit BD on March 18
111Diplomatic Correspondent222
Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden will be visiting Bangladesh from March 18 to 21 as a goodwill ambassador of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
She will meet with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, senior government officials, young students, entrepreneurs, business leaders and representatives from the UN system.
The crown princess will also make field visits to witness firsthand the positive impact of inclusive digital development on poverty reduction in rural Bangladesh and explore initiatives led by women and young entrepreneurs striving to mitigate the effects of climate change in vulnerable areas, implemented by the government and UNDP. The UNs support for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh will also be highlighted during the visit.
"The crown princesss visit is a unique opportunity to raise awareness of Bangladeshs development journey and strengthen partnerships towards a resilient and inclusive future," said Ulrika Modéer, UN assistant secretary-general and director of external relations and advocacy at UNDP, who will accompany the crown princess during the visit.
It was the first official mission since her appointment as a UNDP goodwill ambassador in October, the UN agency said.
"Weve seen reductions in extreme poverty, strengthening of womens rights and important advancements in areas such as climate adaptation, disaster risk management and inclusive digitalization. At the same time, Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable countries to both natural disasters and climate change and several development challenges remain," the agency said.
The crown princess will also be accompanied by Swedens Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Johan Forssell.
"Crown Princess Victoria has a long and strong commitment to sustainability, poverty eradication, climate action and equality. We are honoured to welcome the crown princess to UNDP in Bangladesh and showcase our efforts to promote locally led development models that contribute effectively towards a greener, more resilient and inclusive future for all," said UNDP Bangladesh Resident Representative Stefan Liller.
The Swedish crown princess was appointed UNDP goodwill ambassador in October.
In this role, she plays a key role in increasing awareness and engagement for the Sustainable Development Goals and a sustainable future where no one is left behind.
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CPD criticizes electricity tariff hike, cites government policy failures
111Special Correspondent222
The Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD) believes that the recent hike of electricity tariffs on consumers is unjustified as it is the outcome of procedural and policy weaknesses by the government in dealing with the power sector.
"In the name of subsidy adjustment, the government increased tariff in line with the International Monetary Funds suggestion, the recent hike was the first phase of the adjustment, another two spells are coming shortly as IMF said the price per kilowatt hour electricity should be Tk 12.11, however, the calculation is correct if we want a zero subsidy here, but the question is why the consumers are paying more and more, in the 2022-23 fiscal year, the government provided Tk 39,500 crore in subsidies for electricity. During this time, capacity payments were nearly equal, why was it like that?" CPD Research Director Dr Khondaker Golam Moazzem asked at a media briefing titled "Recent Electricity Price Increase: Are There Alternative Options for Affordability?" held at the CPD office.
"The increase the electricity generation without any real forecast has jeopardized the sector, while capacity has surged by double digits, consumption has only seen single-digit growth. It started in 2018, the unplanned generation program has pushed the government into new challenging areas as capacity payments become a major concern for the government," Moazzem remarked.
It is the outcome of the reality that the State-Owned power generation company (BPDB) accounts for losses stemming from procuring electricity at high costs (depending on the use of fuel type in generation), Using LNG, furnace oil, and diesel for electricity production has led to price hikes, Golam Moazzem said.
Identifying the governments wrongdoing in the power sector, CPD unveiled four key strategies as their Alternative Options for Affordability in the briefing.
Moazzem said the increase in capacity has outpaced the growth in electricity consumption significantly. While capacity has surged by double digits, consumption has only seen single-digit growth. This disparity has been widening since 2018, posing a significant challenge with capacity payments becoming a major concern for the government CPD anticipates that with the current trajectory of price increments by the government, the price may reach Tk16.40 per kilowatt in the third phase.
Dr Moazzem urged the government to unveil its subsidy coordination plan and refrain from imposing additional burdens on consumers.
Explaining the additional power capacity, the CPD director said, "BIDAs data showed that the heavy industry expansion has been minimal, while the expansion of the service sector hasn significantly spurred electricity demand. Additionally, economic zones have failed to generate the expected demand.
He said despite substantial subsidies, the power generation sector continues to incur losses due to procedural and policy weaknesses.
"Procurement of power in our country doesn involve any tender process; pricing here is negotiated, it finally increases the tariff," he said, adding that transitioning to competitive tendering promptly could lead to cost reduction.
CPD also made a call to boost the use of renewable energy sources while charging consumers a minimal fraction to counter price inflation.
He focused on transparent pricing policies, for the government to mitigate the impact of escalating electricity expenses beyond 2029.
The strategies include ensuring the phased shutdown of power plants targeted by the government; avoiding any new capacity charges; imposing
o electricity, no payment conditions for electricity purchases, and competitive initiatives to procure electricity through open tenders.
During the briefing, CPD presented a survey report that said that in November 2023, CPD surveyed one thousand households, with low-income households being the majority.
"According to their data, as the government increases electricity prices, the average households electricity-related expenses will increase by 9.50 per cent each time," Dr Khondaker Golam Moazzem said.
Households that paid Tk 1,200 for electricity bills in 2023 will now have to pay Tk 1,315 at the new rates.
Bills for households are increasing from Tk 106 to Tk 118 on average.
Furthermore, due to the new rates, SMEs will see an increase of 9.12 per cent, businesses by 9.7 per cent, and industries by 10 per cent.
"The agriculture sector bears the brunt of the highest rate hike at 11 per cent. This surge is poised to elevate the expenses associated with agricultural production, he remarked.
Focusing on the present power situation, Dr Moazzem said that with every degree rise in Celsius temperature, the demand for an additional 80 megawatts of electricity is created in Dhaka city alone, leading to increased electricity consumption costs for individuals.
