Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus said, Bangladesh is a small country. Half the size of Italy. But we feed 173 million people, while also sheltering 1.3 million Rohingya refugees who have fled violence in Myanmar.

He made these remarks during a keynote address at the World Food Forum gathering in Rome, Italy, on Monday (October 13) at 6 pm local time.

In a written statement, Dr. Yunus said, "We have become self-sufficient in rice production, which is our main food grain. We are one of the top rice, vegetable and freshwater fish producing countries in the world. Our farmers have increased cropping intensity to 214 percent. We have developed 133 climate-tolerant rice varieties."

The chief advisor said, "We have subsidized up to 70 percent in farmer mechanization. We have built a strong food distribution system. Child malnutrition has decreased, diets have become more diverse through soil, water and biodiversity protection. Agriculture has become greener."

He said, "I am delighted that the 'Nobel Peace Laureates Alliance for Food Security and Peace', formed by the 'Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO)' in 2016, of which I am a member, has now been recognized as a milestone for FAO. I hope it will create more new milestones."