BENEATH Bangladesh鈥檚 paddy fields, village homesteads and fish ponds, a quiet digital revolution is reshaping rural life. Real-time agricultural technology is providing timely insights into crop health, soil fertility and localised weather patterns. In a country where nearly half the workforce still depends on agriculture, these tools are changing the way farmers grow food and sustain their livelihoods.
A 2023 field study in Chandpura village, Barisal, revealed that young farmers are readily adopting mobile advisory services for soil testing, pest warnings and market updates. Older farmers, once sceptical of such tools, are gradually following suit 鈥� an encouraging sign of growing digital literacy even in remote communities. Among the most transformative innovations are hyper-local weather apps. Rather than broad, generic forecasts, these services provide district- and upazila-specific predictions, including hourly rainfall, fortnightly monsoon patterns and drought alerts. Machine learning now delivers up to 98 per cent accuracy in predicting rainfall, temperature, humidity and sunshine, helping farmers plan planting, irrigation and input use with far greater precision.
Crop disease detection is advancing just as rapidly. Platforms such as SMARD, developed by the Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture and the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh, use photo-based machine learning to identify diseases within seconds, linking farmers to agronomists as well as microcredit and input suppliers. In Brahmanbaria, convolutional neural network models detect tomato leaf diseases with over 95 per cent accuracy, enabling early intervention and reducing losses. Drones equipped with multispectral cameras are likewise revolutionising soil assessment. Real-time nitrogen and moisture data allow precision fertilisation, lowering costs and minimising waste. Cooperatives and shared services are making these once-expensive tools accessible to smallholders. Integrated digital platforms now combine weather, soil and disease data to optimise crop choice, predict yields and improve efficiency.
The rapid spread of mobile and internet access underpins this transformation. As of 2021, Bangladesh counted 158 million mobile subscribers, with over 86 million using mobile internet. Although 4G now covers 80 per cent of users, rural gaps remain. Low-power LoRaWAN networks and planned 5G services promise the low-latency connectivity essential for drones and real-time advisories, though rolling out such infrastructure nationwide is still a challenge. Investment in the agri-tech sector is also growing. The University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh reports that by 2023, homegrown ventures had attracted nearly $14 million, offering innovations ranging from precision soil analysis to IoT-based livestock monitoring. Notable examples include Aunkur, which provides real-time soil analytics, and Adorsho Pranisheba, which delivers livestock health alerts.
Yet barriers persist. Smartphones remain expensive, digital literacy is uneven and many apps are still available only in English. Patchy network reliability and frequent electricity shortages limit adoption. Only about 30 per cent of rural farmers regularly use agri-tech; reaching the remaining 70 per cent will require targeted subsidies, training programmes and inclusive designs aimed at women and marginalised communities. Public policy is gradually addressing these issues. The 2018 National Agriculture Policy prioritises e-governance and digital inclusion. Hundreds of Digital Information Centres now offer advisory services and soil testing kits, while the Krishi Call Center has fielded more than four million farmer queries. Partnerships with universities, NGOs and development agencies such as USAID and GIZ are piloting LoRaWAN-powered irrigation systems and other advanced technologies.
The early results are promising. Farmers in flood-prone Satkhira using hybrid rice and app-based advisories have recorded yield gains of 15 to 18 per cent and cut input costs by around 8 per cent. Shrimp farmers in Khulna monitoring pond oxygen levels via IoT have reduced stock mortality by 25 per cent. In Bogura, combining weather, pest and soil tools has lowered fertiliser use by 20 per cent without affecting yields. The next generation of agri-tech 鈥� including AI-powered locust modelling, drone-based spraying, livestock health chatbots and SMS early-warning systems 鈥� is already on the horizon.
To realise this potential, Bangladesh must strengthen rural infrastructure, foster public-private partnerships, establish clear data-security standards and draw on the expertise of universities and civil society. The country鈥檚 journey from basic SMS alerts in 2020 to today鈥檚 interconnected ecosystem demonstrates what is possible, but lasting success will depend on inclusive, policy-driven implementation.
Agri-tech is no longer a luxury; it has become a necessity. From a disease alert pinging on a farmer鈥檚 phone to drones delivering precision spraying, the future of farming in Bangladesh is not a distant dream 鈥� it is already unfolding in the fields.
听
Dr Makhan Lal Dutta, an agricultural engineer, is CEO of Harvesting Knowledge Consultancy.
