Bangladesh, June 29 -- Although the coronavirus outbreak in Bangladesh has halted almost all economic activities and disrupted the supply chain, the agriculture sector continued playing a key role in saving the lives and livelihoods of people.

Agriculture contributes 14.74 percent to the country's GDP and provides employment to about 41 percent of the labour force, according to the Labour Force Survey 2015-16.

Economists have urged the government to maintain the supply chain and resolve bilateral problems to grab global markets. Businesspeople were urged to diversify agro- processing products.

Agriculture was given the second-highest priority in the proposed budget with an allocation of Tk 22,489 crore, up by Tk 1,005 crore from last y...