The Agri-Business for Trade Competitiveness Project (ATC-P), branded as Kataylst who promotes the rural market development in Bangladesh, implemented by Swisscontact and funded by UK AID, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation SDC and Embassy of Denmark, DANIDA, the International Development Cooperation organized a 4-day international workshop entitled “Inclusive Market System Development (IMSD) Workshop” held on October 16-19, 2017 at Himawari Hotel Apartments, Sisowath Quay, Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The key areas of the training program focused on the rationale and principles of the Market Systems Development (MSD) for inclusive growth, ways and means for the application of MSD and institutionalize MSD approach within an organization.

Representatives from the Ministry of Commerce, Economic Relations Division (ERD) under Ministry of Finance, Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), Business Promotion Council (BPC), Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI), Rural Development Academy (RDA) Bogra, Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF), Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University (BSMRAU), Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU)- Mymensingh,  Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Sylhet Agricultural University, Agricultural Training Institute- Ishwardi, and American International University-Bangladesh (AIUB) attended the workshop. Mr. Stanley Rodrick, Assistant Professor, Department of Marketing, Faculty of Business Administration, and the Team Leader of the ‘Agro-based Product Marketing’ course of the FBA Program, represented the University at the above mentioned workshop.

The representatives from the different institutions presented their respective organization’s activities and through the group activities, the representatives have gained valuable knowledge and insights about the applications of Market Mapping through Market Investigation, identifying underlying causes of problem through Intervention Area Identification, designing Business Model, and Monitoring and Results Measurement.

Swisscontact team of Cambodia has also arranged a day long field trip to the Kampong Cham Province in Cambodia. The representatives along with the team of Kataylst from Bangladesh visited a Farmer’s Cooperative located in the province and interacted with the members and executive committee members about the formation and operational practices of the local cooperative. After the lively interaction, the team from Bangladesh has also visited a local papaya plantation farm and a maize processing unit.

It is to mention that, Faculty of Business Administration, AIUB and Katalyst have collaborated in introducing ‘Rural Marketing’, ‘Agro-based Product Marketing’, and ‘Product Innovation and Management’ courses in the academia as major courses under the Department of Marketing, FBA, AIUB. With this initiative, the BBA Marketing major students will have extra knowledge of Marketing since these courses are only offered in AIUB. It is hoped that other related activities will be undertaken by the Department of Marketing to equipped the students with adequate knowledge and appropriate skills in the field of Marketing and at the same time keeping them abreast of the new trends and developments needed by the industry and the business sector.