Development adviser Farida Akhter has said that Bangladesh does not need to adopt modern cattle breeds at the expense of its native ones. "Our focus should be on preserving indigenous cattle while ensuring adequate milk and meat production," she stated. Akhter rejected claims that native breeds are disappearing, saying that foreign breeds have been aggressively introduced under the guise of modernization. "Those promoting foreign breeds have often undermined the value of local cattle, now claiming farmers are uninformed," she added. She emphasized the need for region-based conservation programs and questioned why farmers aren't being incentivized to rear native breeds.