Covid-19 Disruption in Agricultural Productivity: Lessons from Southwestern Bangladesh

Purpose: Bangladesh is a low-lying deltaic nation in South Asia, and as such, its agriculture is continually threatened by various natural disasters, including floods, drought and storms. Additionally, from March 2020 to the end of 2021, Bangladesh’s agricultural productivity encountered grave challenges of the pandemic COVID-19, just like the rest of the world. Therefore, the research was designed to examine how COVID-19 affected agricultural productivity from the perspective of farmers in southwest Bangladesh.Research Method: Face-to-face interviews, paired t-tests, Pearson’s product-moment correlation, multiple linear regression analyses, principal component analyses and cluster analyses were done.Findings: Significant variation was recorded in yield, production cost, gross income and net income between Covid-19 and non-Covid times. During COVID-19, farmers’ perception of crop production was positively correlated to experience, training and in-field extension service whereas market value positively impacted crop yield. During a pandemic, the respondents had the strongest concerns regarding 1) unavailability and the high price of seed, 2) limited transportation facilities and high fair and 3) unavailability of labor and high wages. Principal component analysis (PCA) identified 9 key variables out of 24 explaining the maximum variance of the study. Cluster analysis (CA) categorized all surveyed crops into three clades with cabbage, sweet gourd, eggplant and potato in clade-I being least affected, resulting in relatively higher economic return than others.Value: All things considered, the study’s findings provide insight to policymakers about how to maintain food security and the food supply chain in the event of a future pandemic or other catastrophic event by guaranteeing a steady supply of farming inputs and transportation facilities.