E-Bangladesh Desk

Government, EU and UN partners gather to review the Aggregation Centre model

and chart the path for wider scale-up under the PROACT project

Cox's Bazar, 16 August 2026: The Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), in

collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO),

convened a Coordination and Learning Workshop on Sustainable Agri-food Systems

Transformation.

The high-level event brought together senior government officials, UN agencies, and

NGO/INGOs. Attendees reviewed progress under the EU-funded Pro-Resilience Action

(PROACT) project, "Resilience Strengthening through Agri-Food Systems Transformation in

Cox's Bazar", focusing on ways to institutionalize its innovations into national systems.

The workshop showcased field experiences and highlighted the success of the Aggregation

Centre (AC) model. It also discussed findings of two technical assessments: climate-smart fish-

drying Technologies and the Effectiveness of agent banking services delivered through ACs.

“The PRO-ACT project has demonstrated that Aggregation Centres can effectively bring

climate-smart technologies, digital advisory services, quality inputs and market linkages closer

to smallholder farmers,” said Dr. Md. Zakir Hossain, Director, Admin and Finance, Department

of Agricultural Extension.

He added, “DAE is committed to building on these experiences and exploring opportunities to

institutionalize and scale the Aggregation Centre model within the national agricultural

extension system. With appropriate policy support, resources and partnerships, we can sustain

these services beyond the project and extend their benefits to farming communities across

Bangladesh.”

Implemented by FAO in close collaboration with DAE, under the Ministry of Agriculture,

PROACT operates across Cox's Bazar Sadar, Ramu, Ukhiya and Teknaf sub-districts. The

project aims to improve food and nutrition security, expand livelihood opportunities, and

strengthen resilience among farming households through climate-smart crop production, fish

farming, sustainable dried-fish production, stronger agricultural value chains, market access, and

financial literacy.

A central pillar of PROACT is the FAO-supported Aggregation Centres (ACs). These platforms

integrate climate-smart agriculture, digital extension advisories, post-harvest handling, and

market linkages for smallholder and marginalized farming households. DAE Cox's Bazar

provides the institutional and technical leadership for the ACs. As of today, the project has

already trained 10,000 households in nutrient-dense vegetable production.

“FAO is proud to stand alongside the Department of Agricultural Extension and the European

Union in advancing this important work in Cox's Bazar”, said Dia Sanou, Deputy FAO

Representative in Bangladesh. “The Aggregation Centre model shows that we can transform the

lives of many people when climate-smart agriculture, digital advisory services and market

linkages are brought together around the needs of smallholder and marginalized farming

households.”

Sanou added “As PROACT moves into its next phase, FAO remains committed to working with

DAE to ensure that the lessons learned here translate into lasting benefits well beyond Cox's

Bazar.”

The event concluded with technical presentations and an open discussion where, government and

field-level stakeholders discussed out replication strategies to sustain these agricultural practices

beyond the project lifecycle.