The official launch of the Greenhouse Impact Cluster project, a pioneering public-private initiative between Dutch and Bangladeshi partners, took place during the BIDA Investment Summit in Dhaka and the Best of Bangladesh event in Amsterdam.

The project, coordinated by Dutch Greenhouse Delta (DGD), marks a major step towards developing sustainable and resource efficient crop cultivation practices in Bangladesh's horticultural sector.

At the core of the project is the development of a mid-tech demonstration greenhouse, supplemented by a training programme in Bangladesh, said a press release.

The facility, to be established this year at the ACI R&D Centre in Mawna -- approximately 60 km north of Dhaka -- will serve both as a training as well as a demonstration centre showcasing sustainable food practices.

This collaboration brings together expertise from leading Dutch and Bangladeshi organisations.

From the Netherlands, the consortium includes AgrowSer VDH Foliekassen BV, Hoogendoorn Growth Management BV, Bayer | De Ruiter Seeds BV, Koppert Biological Systems BV, Lentiz, and Dutch Greenhouse Delta (DGD), who also serves as the project coordinator. Their Bangladeshi counterparts in this initiative are Advanced Chemical Industries (ACI) and Gazipur Agricultural University (GAU).

The project was officially introduced in Bangladesh during a kickoff session at the BIDA Investment Summit on April 10, in the presence of Dr Mohammad Ullah Mian, secretary, Ministry of Agriculture (Bangladesh), Andre Carstens, ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Bangladesh, Dr FH Ansarey, president, ACI Agribusiness, and Sara van Hoeve, senior policy officer – Economic Affairs & Private Sector Development, Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Bangladesh.