Bangladesh is primarily an agricultural farming. Agriculture is the most important productive sector of the economy, consisting of about 30% of GDP and employs about 60% of the total workforce. The performance of this sector has a major impact on the major macroeconomic objectives such as job creation, poverty alleviation, human resource development and food security.
Bangladesh is the largest producer of jute in the world better, which is also known as raw jute and jute natural. Rice is the staple food, the production is of great importance. Rice production amounted to 20.3 million tons in fiscal year 1996-1997. Political program of crop diversification, credit, extension and research, and input distribution undertaken by the government, the positive results. The country is now on the threshold of achieving self-sufficiency in grain.
Comply with the requirements of the national food remains the main target group of government and in recent years there has been significant increase in grain production. Because of disasters like floods, the loss of food and cash crops is a recurrent phenomenon that interferes with the continued progress of the economy as a whole.
Farms in Bangladesh are generally small. Through co-operation of modern machines is gaining popularity. Rice, jute, sugarcane, potatoes, beans, wheat, tea and tobacco are the main crops. The crop sub-sector dominates the agricultural sector contributes about 72% of total production. Fisheries, livestock and forestry sub-sectors are 10.33%, 10.11% and 7.33% respectively.
Tropical forests are responsible for maintaining the ecological balance in Bangladesh important and forestry contributes 1.9 percent of GDP (1999-2000). The forest covers about 17 percent of the territory of the country, or 2.5 million hectares (6.18 million acres). The wood is used for the construction industry as a source of construction materials for the printing industry as a starting material for the production of paper, and as fuel in agriculture. The felling will be limited to about 6.1 million cubic meters, and the government plans to plant more trees in the next 15 years.
Bangladesh also produces tea leaves, mainly for export, although export of this product contributes only 1 percent of the country’s income in foreign currency. In 1998-99 the country produced 56,000 tons of tea leaves, but could produce twice that amount. The greatest obstacle to increased production is in decline in tea prices on the international market and the problems of management and regulation of the industry in the country.
Fishing is another important activity in the country to contribute 4.9 percent of GDP (1999-2000) and provision of 6 percent of total exports earnings. Global fish production was about 1.6 million tons (1999-2000). Bangladesh mainly exports its shrimp in the international market.