Private-Sector Imports of Fertilizers and Pesticides in Bangladesh

Abstract

Evolution of the fertilizer market in Bangladesh has many elements in common with that in other developing countries. Use of chemical fertilizers was practically unknown to ordinary farmers even in the early 1950s. In 1951/52, the earliest year for which any data are available, about 10,000 mt of ammonium sulfate was used, almost entirely in the tea gardens. The Government undertook several schemes in the 1950s for popularizing fertilizer use through the agricultural extension staff, but progress was poor due to prejudice, apathy, and ignorance about the benefits of fertilizer application among farmers, an almost total absence of a marketing infrastructure, and a lack of vigor in the Government effort. Fertilizer consumption rose to only 50,000 mt by 1959/60.