Agar (Aquilaria agallocha Roxb.) based small-scale enterprises in Bangladesh: Management, production, marketing and role in socio-economic development

Agarwood (Aquilaria agallocha Roxb.) is one of the most expensive woods in the world. Agar-based enterprises are increasing due to the high demand for agar products worldwide including Bangladesh. Information on the socio-economic condition, silvicultural operation, extraction, processing, marketing and potential barriers are crucial for the formulation of a proper management plan. Therefore, the study was conducted in the Moulvibazar district of Bangladesh using a semi-structured questionnaire and focus group discussion to explore the aforesaid issues and provide subsequent recommendations for this sector. A total of 120 respondents (an equal number of agar nursery owners, growers, buyers and enterprise owners) were selected randomly based on the preliminary surveys. The growers and enterprise owners were mostly literate (77%) and had nurseries…