Program on Agricultural and Rural Transformation for Nutrition, Entrepreneurship, and Resilience

Bangladesh has made rapid social and economic progress in recent decades, reaching lower-middle-income status in 2015. The national poverty rate fell to 24.5 per cent in 2016, while extreme poverty declined to 13.0 per cent. However, the pace of poverty reduction has slowed in recent years even as growth accelerated.

To attain upper-middle-income status by 2031, Bangladesh needs to create jobs by developing a competitive business environment, diversifying exports, investing in human capital, building efficient infrastructure, strengthening the financial sector and establishing a policy environment that attracts private investment.

The goal of the Programme on Agricultural and Rural Transformation for Nutrition, Entrepreneurship and Resilience (PARTNER) is to transform agriculture towards high-value crops, ensure food and nutrition security and build resilience to climate change.

This will be done by promoting sustainable and nutritious food production; increasing entrepreneurship and access to services; and modernizing institutions and policies for agriculture transformation.