Bangladesh - Stage 2
Main findings
Bandarban is having health and sanitation-related facilities and services by the government but more attention is required both for infrastructure and staffing for wider coverage of the hilly district. The more remote areas are often lacking in services, forcing people to travel long distances for basic medical care. Also, the water crisis is another significant one people face here. When the water level downs in the dry season, people in remote areas of the district face extreme water crises. Access to clean water and latrines remains a serious problem; intestinal infections are an ongoing co
... Read morencern. Although govt. has undertaken various measures focusing on those issues it needs to be strengthened. WASH and sanitation program needs to be expedited considering the local contexts. Market access is limited because of poor road and transportation systems. There are severe food shortages during the lean season. Additionally, although CHT (Rangamati, Khagrachari, Bandarban) holds only one percent of the country’s population only, alarmingly more than two-thirds of Bangladesh’s malaria cases occur in this region. Bandarban has a good number of unused lands which can be utilized for cultivation. Bringing those uncultivated land under agricultural activities or interventions will have a positive impact on food production and food security of the area. Along with that, preventing deforestation, promoting sustainable agricultural practices, and taking conservation measures to prevent hill razing, soil erosion, and biodiversity loss will be helpful to ensure a sustainable food system. Burning down natural vegetation for jhum cultivation should be stopped. Sustainable jhum cultivation or alternates should be promoted to allow natural vegetation to replenish, for example, tree-based land use through agroforestry and fruit farming. Tobacco cultivation should also be made limited as it consumes extra nutrients from the soil, reduces soil nutrients more rapidly than many other food crops, and wears away soil fertility. Besides, tobacco requires a huge amount of fertilizer and chemical inputs that affect soil adversely. As a result, cultivating other crops on the same land does not bring expected yield. Govt. has undertaken measures to reduce tobacco cultivation across the country which needs to be expedited in the hilly districts. Setting up storage facilities and engaging the private sector will help to reduce food loss in the post-harvest period. Bandarban has several remote areas where income generating activities are limited which induce the poverty level high. Apart from promoting the adoption of sustainable agriculture practices, those who are extremely poor, vulnerable indigenous groups, and farmers should be supported by government subsidies and different social safety nets applicable for those specific areas. Officials responsible for the quality of agricultural products, manufactured products, and market surveillance must be made accountable for their role in promoting safe and nutritious food consumption among the general population. Everyone should be aware of and get pertinent information, which they can put to use. While the country has been declared to be food secure, it is necessary to focus on the nutritional value of food ingested by people on a daily basis, especially by people living in remote and vulnerable pockets like hill tracts, coastal, char and haor lands. These areas should be brought under close monitoring to ensure: affordability and accessibility to safe and nutritious food in local markets; food relief to people in hard-to-reach areas during any natural disaster; income-generating opportunities during the lean period etc. A number of awareness-increasing initiatives should be undertaken, such as seminars, symposiums, campaigns, and media involvement, that focus on different challenges as well as nutrition, sanitation and hygiene practices. People from government, NGOs, academia, private sector, grassroots, civil society have to come together. Capacity building and awareness training may be delivered to private business engaged in food sector, as well as hotel business cooperatives. Motivational as well as capacity building training should be arranged for youth in particular, to involve them in agriculture. Read less
Action Track(s): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Keywords: Data & Evidence, Environment and Climate, Finance, Governance, Human rights, Innovation, Policy, Women & Youth Empowerment