Key Trends from the 2006 country brief

• From 1981 until 2002, agricultural research spending and staffing numbers in Bangladesh grew, though spending growth was erratic.
• Government-based agricultural research in Bangladesh is coordinated by the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC). BARC, however, has no control over the allocation of the financial resources.
• In 2002, BARC and its 10 affiliated research institutes accounted for about three-quarters of the country’s agricultural research expenditure.
• Agricultural research has depended on donor financing, particularly in terms of World Bank loans, which facilitated considerable investments in infrastructure and equipment.
• Bangladesh’s agricultural research capacity has deteriorated in terms of researcher numbers as a result of the brain drain of the qualified and experienced researchers.
• The private sector has minimal input into agricultural R&D in Bangladesh, though greater involvement is anticipated in the future.

Bangladesh