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Use
of Sustainable Livelihoods Approaches
Inland
capture fisheries historically make an important contribution
to the livelihoods of the rural poor of Bangladesh. About
13 million people are estimated to depend for their livelihoods
on the fishery sector, but half of all rural households living
in floodplains catch fish for food or income, and about 80%
of households fishing for an income are poor.
Increased
landlessness and poverty due to rapid population growth have
increased fishing pressure contributing to depletion of fish
stocks, which in turn has adversely impacted on the livelihoods
of those dependent on inland capture fisheries. The MACH project
has worked to reverse this through interventions such as wetland
restoration and livelihood diversification.
MACH adopted
the Community based Co-management approach to address poverty,
declining fisheries and environmental degradation of wetlands
in Bangladesh. Major elements of its work include:
• Mobilizing communities into registered organisations
‘Resource User Groups‘ that are empowered to conserve
the resource;
• Helping them make resource management maps and plans;
• Undertaking habitat restoration;
• Adopting conservation measures for sustainable harvesting;
• Introducing alternative sources of income to reduce
pressure on wetlands and enhance incomes (such as cow rearing,
poultry and aquaculture, and also training in occupational
skills to be mechanics and electricians).
• Engaging local government bodies and elected members
to strengthen and provide sustainable support to these local
Resource Management Organizations (RMOs).
Some of
the key lessons from the livelihood diversification support
work have been:
•
Learn from field experience: the creation of self-employment
opportunities and small entrepreneurship schemes has been
financially feasible and has enabled the poor to adopt wetland
conservation and sustainable use practices
• Make the poor fishers count in protection and conservation
of wetland resources by diversifying their livelihoods so
that they can reduce their dependence on wetlands
• Women have an important role: they can influence opinion
in support of wetland conservation and protection when they
have the incentive of AIGAs
• Strengthen local institutions for sustainability:
do not just create new organizations, link these with existing
institutions (public and private) that can take credit for
improvements in livelihoods and resource management
• Make the fruits of development both quantitative and
qualitative: economic benefits are essential for the poor,
but so too are establishing human rights and good governance,
freedom of choice, and good neighborly living. A participatory
process, such as that adopted by MACH, gives the poor the
opportunity and choice to take initiatives they need.
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