Disaster-led occupational transformation of the fishing community in coastal bangladesh

Abstract

Coastal communities around the world have become vulnerable in recent years due to climate change. Like other communities, coastal fishing communities in Bangladesh have also become vulnerable due to increase the frequency of climate extreme events. A large number of studies have been conducted on fishing community’s occupational transformation worldwide. Most of these studies focus on their vulnerabilities, migration, coping strategies and climate change adaptation. However, little research has considered the disaster-led occupational transformation of coastal fishing communities. Considering the gap, the current study explores disaster-led occupational transformation and its outcomes in the coastal fishing community in Bangladesh. The study finds out possible ways to secure fishermen's livelihoods. Using a mixed methods approach, data were collected from six villages form two districts of coastal Bangladesh through surveys, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions. Findings show that coastal fishers, affected by various disasters have been changing their fishing occupations and transforming into other roles for example, fishing labor, fish business, shop keeper, auto van puller, motorcycle driver, day labor, construction worker, garments worker and small business. The study explores the causes of occupational transformation and finds that various factors, including different types of disasters (e.g., cyclones, storm surges, salinity and riverbank erosion) and other factors (e.g., moneylender's pressure, decreased navigability of rivers and increased prices of fishing equipment) compel them to make this transformation. The changes in occupation create financial and social crises (e.g., income decrease, poverty increase, dropout and breakdown of social networks) and sometimes, occupational transformation secure their livelihood by reducing life threats from disasters and mental stress, increasing income and social networking. Additionally, the study identifies several ways to secure the lives and livelihoods of fishing communities (both regular fishers and transformed fishers), such as providing soft loans, skill development training and social safety nets and excavation of coastal rivers is needed for regular fishers. The study also finds that transformed fishers need support, such as big boats, good nets, life-saving instruments, and easy loans, fair market price. The study argues that due to the changing occupation, some fishermen are well, however some of them face difficulties in the study area. This study suggests that government and non-government initiatives are needed to make their occupation secure, as they are not skilled to perform their current occupation in terms of their ancestral fishing occupation.