Bangladesh is preparing to introduce remote sensing and drones to detect crop damage caused by extreme weather events or diseases.

Around 20 officers of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) are initially receiving training to learn how to use the state-of-the-art technologies.

Malay Choudhury, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, and Edimon Ginting, ADB Country Director for Bangladesh inaugurated a workshop titled “The Use of Drone and Satellite Image for Crop Monitoring and Crop Damage Assessment” on Wednesday at a city hotel to initiate a 7-day training program, said a press release.

DAE and the ADB jointly designed the training program to be conducted from 17 to 25 April 2024.

Renowned geospatial experts from the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) will conduct the training.

The trainees will receive four days of classroom training on geographical information systems (GIS) and remote sensing analysis for crop damage detection and participate in a 3-day field trip to Sylhet to learn how to collect ground data using mobile devices.

Local DAE officials are expected to participate in the training in Sylhet, where the 2022 floods caused major crop damage.

“Proper assessment of crop diseases and losses are critical to take appropriate measures to ensure agricultural productivity and food security in the context of growing threats of climate change in Bangladesh,” said Country Director Edimon Ginting.

“ADB will continue to bring innovative solutions including advanced technologies to help Bangladesh tackle climate impacts,” Ginting added.

“With advanced geospatial technology, our officers will be able to assess crop damage and provide effective government programs to mitigate the expected damage caused by climate change in the future,” said Badal Chandra Biswas, Director General of the DAE.  

Following the training program, ADB and DAE plan to produce joint reports on crop damage assessment in the Sylhet region, conduct a project evaluation study of an ADB-supported integrated water management project in Gopalganj areas, and implement a nationwide climate disaster assessment in a small local government unit.

Japan Fund for Prosperous and Resilient Asia and the Pacific financed by the Government of Japan provided the grant fund for the training program through the Asian Development Bank.  

ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members—49 from the region.