Effect of COVID-19 on the livestock sector in Bangladesh and recommendations

COVID-19 and its accompanying effects have severely affected an estimated 0.3 million dairy farms and 65–70 thousand commercial poultry farms in Bangladesh. Many of them closed down or halted productions due to the burden of continuous losses. Reports showed that about 12–15 million liters of milk have remained unsold, which has caused a daily loss of 570 million Bangladeshi Taka (6.7 million USD) in the dairy sector only. Furthermore, the poultry sector has also encountered a loss of a minimum of 115 billion Bangladeshi Taka (1.35 billion USD) within just two weeks from March 20 to April 4, 2020. The situation might accelerate the arising food crisis due to the collapse of the livestock sector during the COVID-19 pandemic and turn it into a humanitarian catastrophe. Hence, the government should retaliate through the provision of financial assistance to livestock farmers, and the proclamation of emergency veterinary services on the earliest basis. In addition to that, the government could develop long-term, sustainable strategies and projects through multi-sectoral engagement to ensure further capacity building of farmers and other stakeholders.