In a boost to intra-South Asian cooperation, Nepal on Thursday received 45,000 metric tonnes of urea from Bangladesh as part of a government-to-government agreement that the two nations had signed in December last year for 50,000 metric tonnes of fertilizer. 

The remaining 5,000 metric tonnes of an additional 2,000 metric tonnes provided by Bangladesh will arrive in Nepal within a week, reported The Himalayan Times. Significantly, India last year also agreed to allow transit of fertilizers from Bangladesh as it looked to improve its ties with Kathmandu and boost regional connectivity.

The delivery of fertilizers got delayed because of the Covid-19 restrictions. 

Currently, India is the biggest supplier of fertilizers to Nepal. In 2019, India exported almost 73 percent of total fertilizer imports to Nepal; China provided the rest. The latter has a requirement of around 700,000 tonnes of chemical fertilizers annually, and 300,000 tonnes of import requirement. 

Since the onset of the pandemic, supply lines often get disrupted, creating an acute urea shortage in the country, forcing the government to diversify its supply chains.  

Unlike in the past where farmers faced scarcity of fertilizers, this year timely availability of urea during monsoon would help good paddy plantation. 

(SAM)