Dhaka, Bangladesh, February 3, 2010
—IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is partnering with Bangladesh’s Supreme Seed Co. Ltd to increase production and supply of stress- tolerant rice and vegetables seeds that can withstand harsh weather conditions.
Such initiatives are critical to ensuring national food security and reducing the vulnerability of farmers in stress-prone regions.
The SouthAsia Enterprise Development Facility, managed by IFC in partnership with the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development and the Norwegian Agency for Development, will provide advisory support to Supreme Seed in the project. The facility aims to build the private sector’s capacity to produce, promote, and distribute better seeds in a timely and cost-efficient manner.
“This collaboration will greatly assist our business expansion in the stress-prone northern and southern regions of Bangladesh,” said Humayun Kabir, Deputy Managing Director of Supreme Seed. “We expect this initiative will build the adaptive capacity of the farmers particularly in stress-prone regions.”
Earlier this month, SEDF formed a similar partnership with Energypac, another private seed producing/ distributing company. Over the next few months, SEDF hopes to partner with a handful of others to ensure the availability of a critical mass of stress-tolerant seeds in stress-prone regions of Bangladesh.
With floods and salinity increasing, Bangladesh faces the risk of losing 17 percent of its land mass, displacing 20 million people, due to climate change. Salinity, floods, and drought have damaged millions of hectares, and crop yield has dropped to as little as 1 metric ton per hectare in affected areas, compared to the average yield of 4.5 metric tons a hectare.
Ian Crosby, Head of IFC Advisory Services in Bangladesh, said, “Climate change is a dire threat to the agriculture sector, and adaptive measures for the farming community are needed on an urgent basis. This collaboration aims to deliver services and create business opportunities for the private sector. ”
IFC is the only international financial institution focused exclusively on the private sector, the engine of sustainable development in emerging markets. Along with IBRD, it is currently seeking a capital increase to strengthen its ability to create opportunity for the poor in developing countries—including by advising businesses on how to better cope with climate change.
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, creates opportunity for people to escape poverty and improve their lives. We foster sustainable economic growth in developing countries by supporting private sector development, mobilizing private capital, and providing advisory and risk mitigation services to businesses and governments. Our new investments totaled $14.5 billion in fiscal 2009, helping channel capital into developing countries during the financial crisis. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
