Abandoned and closed state-owned jute mills in Bangladesh will be turned into fertiliser storage facilities, according to a senior official of the Ministry of Agriculture.

Mohammad Emdad Ullah Mian, secretary of the agriculture ministry, said this initiative will help tackle potential shortages of the key farming input in local markets.

"Domestic fertiliser crises will be eliminated. As part of a long-term plan, steps have been taken to increase the country's fertiliser storage capacity," he said.

Mian informed that the move is expected to save Bangladesh between Tk 1,500 crore and Tk 2,000 crore annually by reducing the need for local importers to place multiple orders. At present, fertiliser importers have to curtail their purchases considering the country's existing storage capacity.

As such, they have to order numerous batches of the agricultural input each year, thereby increasing expenses related to logistics and placing them at the mercy of exchange rate fluctuations.

He made these comments at the closing ceremony of a training programme for agricultural journalists held at the Press Institute of Bangladesh in Dhaka yesterday. Furthermore, Mian said a separate project for constructing new warehouses is also underway to enhance the country's fertiliser storage capacity.

"However, we do not want to increase the overall budget for such agricultural projects by even a single taka in the coming days," he added.

Mian also said a balance will be achieved in funding such projects, with unnecessary initiatives being shut down while essential ones will receive higher allocations.

Additionally, the agriculture secretary mentioned that instead of focusing solely on developing new seeds for crop production, efforts should be made to boost the supply of those already being used.