FAO grants $447,000 for safe food, women’s enterprises

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) has provided US$447,000 in grants for two projects in Bangladesh to improve pesticide management and help rural women establish environmentally friendly businesses.
The Economic Relations Division (ERD) of the Ministry of Finance and FAO signed the project documents in Dhaka on Sunday.
ERD Secretary Md Shahriar Kader Siddiky and FAO Representative in Bangladesh Dr Jiaoqun Shi signed the documents on behalf of their respective organisations.
Of the total funding, $200,000 will support a four-year pesticide management project, while $247,000 will finance a two-year initiative to help rural women establish and expand green micro-businesses.
The pesticide management project, titled Strengthening Capacities for Lifecycle Management of Pesticides, is part of the FAO-China South-South Cooperation Programme, funded by China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs. The programme also covers Ethiopia, Ghana, Jordan and Kyrgyzstan.
The project aims to update pesticide regulations, introduce digital registration systems and strengthen enforcement. It will also improve laboratory capacity for pesticide residue testing and raise farmers’ awareness of safe pesticide use.
According to the project document, more than 30% of vegetables in Bangladesh are reportedly contaminated with pesticide residues exceeding permissible limits.
Following an inter-ministerial meeting at the ERD on 10 June, FAO revised the project document to strengthen coordination and implementation.
Under the revised arrangement, the Ministry of Agriculture will lead the Project Task Force, while the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) will participate in implementation. 
The National Project Coordinator will be based in Bangladesh, and the budget has been revised.
The second project, Green Roots Women’s Farm Labs, is a 24-month initiative being piloted in Bangladesh and Uganda, with Bangladesh receiving $247,000.
Building on FAO’s Farmer Field School approach, the initiative will provide rural women with coaching, appropriate technology and access to finance and markets to help them develop sustainable micro-businesses.
Its national partners include the Ministry of Agriculture, the Department of Agricultural Marketing, the Department of Agricultural Extension and Sara Bangla Krishak Society.
The initiative also coincides with the International Year of the Woman Farmer 2026.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Shi said FAO was pleased to support Bangladesh in building safer agrifood systems and creating economic opportunities for rural women.
ERD Secretary Siddiky said the projects reflected a shared commitment to food safety, climate-resilient livelihoods and women’s economic empowerment.
AKM Sohel, wing chief of the ERD’s UN Wing, described FAO as a trusted development partner of Bangladesh since independence, saying the organisation had invested more than $500 million in the country’s agriculture sector.