Small ideas transforming rural lives and livelihoods in river eroded areas of Bangladesh: Case study of Ryutaro Hashimoto APFED award for good practices, 2007

The shifting course of rivers has been known to be the root cause for many socio-economic issues in most parts of Bangladesh. The Disappearing Lands project, conceived and implemented by the Practical Action Bangladesh and its local collaborating non-governmental organizations, is a good example of how small ideas can change rural lives and livelihoods in the riverbank erosion affected areas of Bangladesh. Implemented in the Gaibandha district in the northern Bangladesh, the project was successful in introducing innovative, simple, and practical technologies such as floating vegetable gardens, floating cage fishery, sandbar cultivation, and a host of animal husbandry and off-farm practices those provided rural communities a secured access to gainful income, nutrition, and risk free environment during floods. The project was successful in producing outcomes worth more than the project has invested during its implementation period. The project success can be replicated elsewhere given the policy support from the government and coordinated efforts from all the concerned stakeholders.

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