A New Vision for Agriculture Budget

Bangladesh’s next agriculture budget should not be just a fertiliser-subsidy budget. It should be a budget which will emphasise farmers’ income, food-price-stability, crop-diversification and climate-resilience. Recent instability in rice, onion and potato markets is evidence that production support alone cannot insulate farmers or consumers. Farmers need affordable inputs, easy seasonal loans, storage, crop insurance and fair marketing systems so that they are not forced to sell crops at low prices immediately after the harvest.
Bangladesh’s food security policy has been based on subsidising agriculture. But over the past few years, the subsidies given have not often kept up with the real pressure. The demand for fertiliser subsidies shot up when input prices rose globally and the original allocations had to be revised upwards. For example, fertiliser and agricultural incentives of Tk 16,000 crore proposed in FY2022-23 climbed to Tk 26,693 crore in the revised agriculture subsidy in FY2023-24. In FY2024-25 and FY2025-26, Tk 17,000 crore was once again allocated or proposed despite on-going risks due to fertiliser prices, exchange-rate pressure and climate shocks. This trend shows that the next budget should not be symbolic in terms of under-allocation and should make realistic provisions based on import prices, exchange rates, irrigation costs, domestic gas supply and seasonal demand.
The next agriculture budget needs three linked pillars. First, it must continue with input subsidies for fertiliser, quality seed, irrigation and mechanisation. Secondly, it should create a farmer marketing and storage support fund so that farmers can avoid distress sales. Third, it should support crop diversification and crops of an import-substituting nature such as onions, garlic, pulses, oilseeds, maize, spices and suitable varieties of potatoes. The Farmers’ Card scheme could enable the delivery of subsidised inputs, machinery support, low-interest loans, insurance and advisory services directly to farmers, reducing leakage and unnecessary intermediary control.
Price stability of rice, onion and potato should be taken care of. Rice needs to be strengthened in public procurement, food stock, open market sales and food-friendly programmes. Procurement timings should be such that farmers get good prices at harvest time and consumers get stable prices during lean periods. For onions the budget should help local production zones, quality seeds, drying facilities, storage and contract farming. As onion prices are highly vulnerable to import disruptions, Bangladesh needs a transparent and well-managed buffer-stock system. For both onion and potato, the key challenge is the cycle of distress sales immediately after harvest, followed by sharp increases in consumer prices later in the season.
There are frequent reports revealing farmers being forced to sell onion and potato below their cost of production during peak harvest periods. In the case of onion, adequate and modern storage facilities are still lacking. For potatoes, although cold storages are available in many major producing areas, high storage charges are often not farmer-friendly. Farmers therefore need targeted storage-rent support, farmer-owned cold storage facilities, and better access to warehouse receipt financing so that they are not forced to sell immediately after harvest at low prices.
One significant reform should be the Seasonal Perishable Crop Loan Window. Easy short-term loans should be provided to farmers at the time of peak harvest of rice, potato, onion, tomato, vegetables and fruits. The idea is to help them hold their produce for better prices rather than selling immediately to traders.
Middlemen perform necessary roles in transport, aggregation, credit and market access and cannot be completely eliminated. But excessive control can be reduced through farmer-producer organisations, digital wholesale markets, collection centres at the union level, grading facilities, digital price boards and transparent stock reporting. Stocks in crisis times should be revealed by large traders and cold-storage owners. Market discipline must be based on data and competition monitoring, not just on sudden raids. 
Storage is important too. The budget should establish an agri-storage and cold chain fund for household-level storage of onions and garlic; community storage; cold storage of potatoes; cold chains for vegetables and fruits; and modern silos for rice and maize. Priority should be given to farmer cooperatives, youth entrepreneurs and local small investors, with matching grants and low-interest loans.
Protection against climate risk must be part of it too. Haor agriculture is highly susceptible to flash floods, particularly before the boro harvest. Recent damage to boro rice in north-eastern haor areas is a sharp reminder why fragile environments need special budgetary protection. A national crop insurance programme should be started for farmers in the haor, char, coastal and drought-prone areas. Bangladesh has already tried pilots on index-based crop insurance in Sunamganj. The government should subsidise premiums for small and marginal farmers, and insurance triggers should be based on rainfall, flood level, salinity, drought or cyclone risk.
Crop diversification must be a strategic priority. Bangladesh cannot afford to give up rice, but over-reliance on rice hurts nutrition, soil health and farm income. Diversification can reduce income risk and strengthen sustainable food systems. A realistic target would be a gradual conversion of about 10% of rice area to high-value and import-substitution crops without sacrificing total rice output through higher yield, stress-tolerant varieties and mechanisation. The objective should be equal rice production from less land and more income from diversified land.
Finally, there is a need to give dedicated support to integrated agriculture. Rice-fish farming, vegetable-fish-livestock systems, homestead gardening, duck rearing in haor areas, production of fodder and compost-based soil management can help to reduce risk and improve nutrition. Agriculture, fisheries, livestock, water resources, rural roads and local government budgets should thus be coordinated. 
The next agriculture budget must ensure farmers are protected before crisis hits them, not compensated after they lose out. In short, it should aim to uphold the dignity of the farmers.