Abstract:
Climate change-induced (CCI) calamities have immense negative impacts on coastal fishers’
livelihoods by damaging their household and fishery-related assets, which triggers cyclic poverty
among them. This study aimed to identify household-level economic penalties due to CCI calamities
among the coastal fishers of Bangladesh. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 338 coastal
fishers living in 11 coastal districts using a random sampling technique. Males outnumbered females
[84.6% vs. 15.4%], with nearly all (99.1%) living below the poverty line. On average, coastal fishers
had to struggle against at least three (3.12 ± 1.28) CCI catastrophes with considerable losses per
incidence [domestic asset loss: 38318 ± 33071; loss in fisheries: 19236 ± 20486] within the past five
years. CCI incidences such as severity of disaster, longevity of disaster, winter-cold shock, and water
flow were significantly associated with domestic asset loss [95% C.I., p<0.05]. Similarly, severity of
disaster, winter-cold shock, water flow, and sea waves during storms were also significantly associated
with the impoverished status of coastal fishers in Bangladesh. Climate-resilient coastal management
and livelihood improvement policies implemented by the relevant authorities could reduce impending
economic penalties for coastal fishing communities.
