March 6, 2009

Bangladesh will extend assistance to its domestic poultry industry to help in the recovery from bird flu, according to Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury on Thursday (Mar 5).

The bird flu had hit the poultry industry hard in the past two years, and the government would help it to recover losses, Chowdhury said.

The growth of the poultry industry could play an important role in meeting population's protein needs as arable lands and water area are decreasing steadily, she said.

Chowdhury said local scientists and experts should produce vaccines, drugs and poultry feeds domestically to reduce Bangladesh's reliance on imports.

The livestock industry's contribution to GDP was 2.95 percent, of which the poultry sector accounted for 25 percent, said Fisheries and livestock minister Abdul Latif Biswas.

Biswas added that the poultry industry has achieved a 15-percent growth per year on an average for the past two decades.