Farmers household information in Bangladesh: significant indicators for assessing vulnerability and adaptation

Abstract

Household base-level data of a riverine flood vulnerable area in Bangladesh were explored and identified by 140 households’ questionnaire surveys in case study area Islampur upazila (located in mid north) in 2006. The important findings were: high numbers of family members were in each surveyed household; numbers of dependent family members were very high in comparison with economically active family members where the main primary economic activity was farming; incomes were low i.e. poor economic conditions prevailed (64.28 percent of the respondents had an income of 817.43 US dollars annually); house damage related loss was large in relation to respondent’s annual income and socio-economic condition; occupational loss also was very large compared to overall economic condition of the respondents; within the past 20 years the size of typical farms affected by extreme floods has been reduced by more than half. This base-level household information is important in assessing any vulnerability and adaptation (V&A) scenario in relation with climatic shock such as extreme floods in Bangladesh. It is concluded that the explored household information indicates that the government of Bangladesh needs to develop the base-level information data cell centrally, under the Ministry of Environment, where community based V&A information should be stored, in order to allocate adaptation funds to any specific hazard affected community. This information also helps government to establish nationwide adaptation to climate change policy, and its execution and implementation on community level. It is also found that the affected farmers have been forced to become environmental refugees over time as they have been losing their agricultural lands significantly due to extreme floods; therefore, if this trend continues, resulting in a large scale illegal migration from Bangladesh into neighbouring countries, then the overall human security in the Asia Pacific Region would be severly threatened.