Along Bangladesh's 710 kilometer coastline, several million people from the 14 coastal districts and 49 Upazilas are estimated to depend directly or indirectly on marine fishing for their livelihood-- either for the whole or part of the year. The government's Marine Fisheries Department states that Bangladesh is now the fifth largest marine fishing country in the world in terms of tonnage caught. However, commercial marine fishing is considered to be one of the most hazardous occupations worldwide. Is anything known about the health and safety status of the fishermen of the Bay of Bengal? How many of the fishermen get killed or maimed on the job while supplying fish protein for the country's people?
Looking at some recent newspaper stories may reveal their vulnerabilities.
Event #1: December 7, 2021-- Due to the rough weather, a trawler carrying 21 fishermen capsized in the Bay of Bengal near Barguna'sPatharghata area, and 20 fishermen went missing.
Event #2: March 28, 2022-- Indian Coast Guard rescued 19 fishermen who were deserted in Indian waters in the Bay of Bengal. The Bangladeshi fishermen, who started from Cox's Bazar were marooned as their wooden trawler developed a mechanical problem. The trawler had been floating for more than 20 days. The exhausted fishermen had nothing to eat. They were provided with first aid, food, and water by the Indian Coast Guard.
Event #3: February 6, 2022-- A total of 144 fishermen were rescued after the drowning of 11 trawlers in the Bay of Bengal. The bodies of the two dead were handed over to their families. They were rescued from Pathorghata in Barguna by the Fishermen's Trawler Owners' Association and the Dublarchor Fisherman Group.
Event #4: November 29, 2021-- Bangladesh Navy rescued 14 fishermen alive from a fishing boat that had been floating for eight days in the Bay of Bengal, 140 km away from Cox's Bazar.
Event #5: March 28, 2022-- Some seven fishing trawlers went missing in the Bay of Bengal due to rough weather. At least seven fishermen were considered missing, according to the Bangladesh Coast Guard. The trawlers disappeared in the Bhashanchar route after starting from Banshkhali Upazila of Chattogram.
Around 17 million people (with about 1.5 million women) are engaged in fishing, fish farming, fish handling, and processing for their livelihood in Bangladesh. The fisheries sector contributes 4 per cent to the GDP while the agricultural sector contributes around 15 per cent to the GDP. Around 4.5 million tonnes of fish were harvested in 2017-18, of which 655,000 tonnes came from the Bay of Bengal, almost 16 per cent of the total production. Bangladesh earned taka 4,310 crores from exporting almost 70.95 thousand tonnes of fish, shrimp, and other fisheries or fishery products during 2019-20 and this is 1.40 per cent of the total national export earnings. The country has seen a rise in fish capture, fish culture, and marine fish production, and in terms of distribution, inland capture accounts for 28 per cent, inland culture 57 per cent, while the rest is marine capture.
It is difficult to count how many people rely exclusively on fisheries or related activities in Bangladesh but a great portion is involved in subsistence fisheries on its flood plains. Fisheries and related activities support more than 7 per cent of the country's population. The number of fishermen increases dramatically between June to October each year because of the seasonal patterns of fish harvesting. In terms of marine fishing, at present, there are 255 registered trawlers out of which 236 are used for fishing only. Of those, around 35 are shrimp trawlers, 52 bottom trawlers, 68 midwater transformed trawlers, 53 midwater trawlers, and 28 trial trip bottom trawlers. In addition, there are 67,669 mechanised and non-mechanized boats that are engaged in fishing. Currently, more than 600,000 people are engaged in shrimp farming activities alone.
Several studies conducted in the United States (US) confirmed that commercial fishing is still one of the most dangerous occupations. During 1992-2008, an average of 58 reported deaths occurred (128 deaths per 100,000 workers) annually among commercial fishermen, compared with 5,894 deaths (four per 100,000 workers) in all other sectors in the US. To assess the hazards and risk factors, US CDC collected and analysed fatality data during 2000-2009: out of 504 fatalities, most (52 per cent) occurred following a vessel disaster (e.g., sinking, capsizing, or other events when the crew had to abandon ship) or a fall overboard (31 per cent).
Some risk factors and causes identified for marine fishing by research studies include-- 1) fishing vessels often manned by fewer individuals, 2) working with heavy-duty equipment, 3) working in unsafe environments, 4) working for very long hours, 5) economic pressures forcing inappropriately geared vessels to operate, 6) vessels not fit, not allowed or not safe going further out in sea than permitted. Deaths among the marine fishermen resulted from a wide variety of situations involving 1) vessel loss, 2) falls overboard, 3) fire and explosions, 4) cable entanglements, and 5) gas exposure. In many cases, the real causes or circumstances remained unknown as autopsies are difficult for drowning or hypothermia cases and decomposition and animal predation of the dead bodies made the investigation obscured.
Things must be much worse in Bangladesh for its commercial marine fishermen. Research findings will help with the development of effective prevention measures and practices through the delivery of appropriate safety awareness training. Studying the marine fishermen is important to characterise potential influences on or barriers to safety to design interventions that can alter safety practices and behaviours. The Bangladesh Coast Guard (USCG) can conduct periodic surveys on fishing hazards.
All training programmes must target increasing the awareness among fishermen about the severe occupational risks inherent in their work. Fishing community trust and collaborative partnerships are essential to the success of such initiatives. Simple, yet appropriate training and awareness measures must incorporate visual and written safety messages that can favourably influence attitudes, beliefs, and behavioural intent related to high priority risk factors as identified by fishermen. Opportunities exist and strategies are needed for improving the safety of fishermen in the Bay of Bengal.
Hasnat M Alamgir is a Professor of Public Health.
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