Kazi M. Badruddoza

Upon receipt of his PhD in Plant Pathology at Louisiana State University, Badruddoza was offered faculty position there. Being the eldest of six siblings who were financially dependent on him, he declined and returned home in 1957 to pursue a career in Agricultural Research in newly independent (East) Pakistan. [1]He was appointed as head of the Fiber Division as economic botanist.[7] Wheat and maize were unfamiliar crops to the farmers of the region. The Fiber Division carried out research on wheat and maize as well as tobacco.

In order to advance genetic research in former East Pakistan in wheat and maize crops, Badruddoza was awarded scholarship to pursue post doctoral research at the Lund Institute in Sweden. In 1960, he received his post doctoral diploma in Plant Genetics and Research from the Lund Institute.[4]

Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC)

High Yielding Wheat

While initially in the former East Pakistan upon his return from Sweden, Badruddoza, in 1964, was hired as Senior Director of Research at Pakistan Agriculture Research Council in Karachi, former West Pakistan. He worked closely with American Nobel Laureate and plant geneticist, Dr. Norman Borlaug, with objective of creating semi-dwarf but high yield and disease resistant Mexican wheat varieties in Pakistan. As a result, wheat production doubled in Pakistan between 1965 and 1970, leading to Pakistan's self sufficiency in wheat production by 1968. [8]

Maize Research

He then established a Maize Research Institute under the care of the private sector which was the first of its kind in Pakistan as well as the developing world. The technologies of the institute paved the way to self sufficiency of Pakistan in corn oil production (Rafhan corn oil), starch, glucose, corn syrup and corn flakes.[4]

He was an active member of the Pakistan Agricultural Research Coordination board, government of Pakistan (1964-1971), Central Jute Committee (1966-1971), Pakistan National Science Council (1961-1971). He also served on the Pakistan-American Joint Agricultural Research Evaluation Team (1968-1971). He was invited as the State Guest of the Government of former USSR and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This was followed by his promotion appointment as the Executive Director of Pakistan Agriculture Research Council.[4]

Subsequently, the Pakistan government honored him twice, with the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz in 1968, and Tamgha-e-Pakistan in 1969, the highest civilian award at the time of former West Pakistan, both awarded by then President Ayub Khan.[4]

Following the 1971 India-Pakistan war and creation of independent Bangladesh, he was detained in 1972, at an internment camp by the Pakistani government along with other high-ranking officials from former East Pakistan. In 1973, he was repatriated to what was now Bangladesh.[1][4]

In the newly formed independent state of Bangladesh, he was initially was appointed as the Director of Agriculture Research Council, followed by Director of Bangladesh Agriculture Research and Education. This led to a rapidly growing research career for Badruddoza in the new country.

As a research administrator, he used his experience from Pakistan and focused on wheat research program which was in its infancy in the post war, fledgling nation.

In appreciation of Badruddoza’s role in developing the wheat program of Bangladesh, Nobel Laureate Dr Norman Borlaug wrote in a letter to the President of Bangladesh on April 28, 1978: “When I visited Bangladesh less than four years ago, there was no mention of wheat in the agricultural plan. Nevertheless, during the current crop cycle, Bangladesh harvested between 350,000 to 400,000 acres of wheat, much if it with excellent yield. This fantastic accomplishment could not have been achieved without the vision and excellent organizational ability of the Director of Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute, Dr Kazi M. Badruddoza. Under his excellent leadership, he has assembled an enthusiastic and well motivated team of research scientists.”[4]

Wheat production was 849,000 in 2008-09 and has now increased to1.17 million tons in 2022-23.[9]

Although grown for centuries by the ethnic minorities in the Garo Hills and Chittagong Hill Tracts, maize was not well know by Bangladesh farmers. It ranked third after wheat and rice as a cereal crop but had potential of a staple along with wheat, when rice yield was low in the war torn nation with severe food deficit. He furthered the growth of disease and climate resistance maize crops in the country, coordinated by Bangladesh Agriculture Research Council (BARC). By the start of the millennium, the area of maize had increased by 7 times, production by forty times and yield by six times. [4]The demand continues to rise as a result of genetically advanced varieties. Maize production was at 700,000 tons in 2008-09, and now at 6.4 million tons in 2022-23.[9]

Badruddoza introduced high yielding soybean crop through a research project also coordinated by BARC in 1975.[1][4] The project involved eleven organizations including the Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute (BARI), Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), Bangladesh Agricultural University, Rajshahi University, Shilpee Food Products as well as resources from the NGP Mennonite Central Committee (MCC).[4] He proposed fat free soybean meal as a significant and inexpensive source of protein for animal feeds and many pre-packaged meals, as well as soybean products such as Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP) as ingredients in meat and dairy analogues. Today, multiple regions in Bangladesh such as Barisal, Bhola, Faridpur and Mymensingh grow soybean crops on large acres of land as one of the primary sources of land grown protein. As of 2009, 85,000 metric tons of soybean were produced on 47,000 hectares of land under Badruddoza’s Soybean Project of the Department of Agriculture Extension.[4]

In 1984, in a survey conducted by the Institute of Nutrition and Food Science under Dhaka University. it was found that 93% people in the country suffered severe Vitamin C deficiency. [10]Kazi Guava or commonly known locally as Kazi Peyara (Psidium Guajava) was introduced in 1985 by Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute and named after Kazi Badruddoza, for his leadership in meticulous plant breeding techniques between local and Thai varieties to introduce a large and inexpensive, crispy genetic variant, rich in Vitamin C (200 mg in 10 g edible part of Kazi Guava).[10] Today, Kazi Guava is cultivated widely everywhere in the nation and profitable to farmers in multiple regions in the nation studied by Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute.[10]

Due to Bangladesh’s pre-occupation with cereal crop shortage, research on fruits and vegetables was neglected in the seventies and eighties. Badruddoza is credited with establishing, under supervision of the Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute, the Horticulture Research Center, the Tuber Crops Research Center and the Spice Research Center. This led to significant growth of multiple vegetable varieties and disease resistant potato strains in a post war nation, making steady progress from the country’s starving picture on the world stage toward nutritional self sufficiency.[4]

To facilitate horticultural hybridization, Badruddoza introduced germplasm of the Amrapali mango with the help of an Indian agronomist Dr Rajan Dey, making this variety a widely available and popular genetic variant.[4]

As a chairman of the Bangladesh Agriculture Research Council, Badruddoza led the initiative to establish the Bangladesh Livestock Research Institute and the Bangladesh Fisheries Research Institute in Mymensingh.[1] Through the Soil Resources Development Institute (SRDI) and BARI, Badruddoza inspired group farming in Maheswar Chanda village, training famers in utilizing fertilizer resources as well as in fish fingerling production. [4]According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, United Nations, Bangladesh ranks third in the world in inland open fish farming and fifth in aquaculture.[9] Based on data from the Department of Fisheries, more than 5.4 million tons of fish have been produced in 2023.[9]

In 1975, Badruddoza worked through political loopholes and succeeded in obtaining government clearance for establishment of an autonomous agricultural research organization, the Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute, BARI. [4]He personally supervised the infrastructure of BARI in Joydebpur, while simultaneously overseeing its regional stations and substations throughout the nation. According to his colleagues, he spent many a night in the institute’s half constructed buildings working sleeplessly, over a period of two years. Badruddoza thus became the Founder Director (now Director General) of BARI in 1976.[4] Today, BARI is a sprawling institute of research with multiple genetic research laboratories, greenhouses, livestock and horticulture research facilities as well as a wide expanse of agricultural fields for cereals crops, which are constantly improved for disease and drought resistance.

According to the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), this genetics and plant pathology acumen has resulted in 3-5 times increase in major food grains in Bangladesh since 1971, and according to the Ministry of Food, it has also awarded Bangladesh, once a starving nation, self sufficiency in rice, fish, vegetable and meat production.[9]

Prior to the 1990s, prospective researchers sought Ph.D abroad. Badruddoza introduced Ph.D programs in local agricultural universities in collaboration with donor agencies. He proposed a Ph.D program where a candidate could run research on a local project with the supervision of local and foreign experts. Uppsala University, Sweden and Dhaka University have collaborated on such Ph.D programs.[4]

Badruddoza proposed in a concept paper in 1988, the establishment of IPSA, now known as Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University (BSMARAU), as a post graduate research institute among a rural setting among local farmers. For this objective, this post graduate institute was established in Salna, Gazipur, which went on to produce many of the country’s lead Ph.D researchers today. While in a rural environment, it maintains, for its researchers, the proximity to Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute and Bangladesh Rice Research Institute. Badruddoza gave the first convocation speech in 1995.[4]

Badruddoza established BAAG in 1994.[1][4] Its objective is to recruit Research Fellows, experts in crops, livestock, fisheries and forestry to promote sustainable agriculture, assist government policy and programs for agricultural development. It also assists NGOs to facilitate resources for farmers and participates in international agricultural research to benefit local crops. The Academy gives awards for outstanding contributions in Agriculture research and publishes the journal “Bangladesh Agriculture.” Badruddoza was the Founder President of the Academy, a position which he held repeatedly through his life.[4]

Internationally, Badruddoza was a member of the Advisory Committee of the International Bank for Asia, Manila. The Team for Quinquennial Review of International Rice Research Institute, Laguna, Phillipines included him as a board member in 1989. He was also selected as member of the Governing Board of the Regional Co-ordination Center for Research and Development of Coarse Grain, Pulses, Roots and Tuber Crops in the Humid Tropics of Asia and the Pacific (1984).[1] He was also member of the board of the International Service for National Agriculture Research (ISNAR) and Bangladesh Representative for the Commonwealth Agricultural Bureau (CAB).[11]

Upon his retirement in Bangladesh 1985, Badruddoza was not ready to quit agriculture research. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), United Nations, appointed him Chief Plant Pathologist and Geneticist in another war torn nation of the time, and in 1985, he set off for Hanoi, Vietnam. [11][4]

During his 5 year tenure in Vietnam, he worked with international plant geneticists to create chemical warfare resistant as well as drought and disease resistant rice crops.[4] This research propelled the growth of high yield crops leading to Vietnam's thriving agriculture economy today.

Dr Badruddoza at Food and Agriculture Organization meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam 1985.

Although officially retired as of February 28, 1985, Badruddoza never ceased to work in agriculture genetics. Upon return from Vietnam, Badruddoza, wishing to continue Bangladesh toward self sufficiency in agriculture, re-focused his post retirement career toward building Bangladesh’s agricultural research in the aforementioned research and academic fields.

Upon his retirement, the U.S Ambassador Howard B. Schaffer sent him a certificate of appreciation:

"..Your professional leadership in the agricultural research system of Bangladesh over the last two decades has been of the highest quality and is reflected in the strength and quality of the Bangladesh Agriculture Research Council (BARC) member institutes, Their commitment to increase agricultural productivity through scientific interventions is internationally recognized and respected as a result of your guidance. The US government is extremely proud of its associations with you as the BARC Chairman..." [12]

In 1985, the Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh conferred on him the title of "National Emeritus Scientist" thus formally honoring him with continual role of science and research advisor to BARC, BARI, and the Government. [11]As of now, he was the only scientist in the country to hold that title.