Artisanal fishing communities in Bangladesh face a variety of challenges, such as climate change, overfishing, fish feed extruder https://www.zenopelletmachine.com/product/fish-feed-extruder-machine/,and socio-economic barriers. Women in those communities play a crucial role, often managing household finances, nurturing children, and supporting fishing activities but they often remain unnoticed and unrecognized and face significant barriers to economic independence.

USAID’s Enhanced Coastal Fisheries in Bangladesh (ECOFISH II) project has played a critical role in empowering women by encouraging sustainable income generation, enhancing nutrition, and conserving biodiversity through community-based initiatives. One of the most effective strategies employed by the project has been the engagement of 48 Community Volunteers (CVs) who work closely with 5007 women from artisanal fishing households in 47 fishing villages to enhance their livelihood opportunities and improve household nutrition. This, in turn, fosters environmental stewardship and sustainable fishing practices that benefit both local families and marine ecosystems.

After marrying, I moved to my in-laws' home in a fishing village in Cox's Bazar Sadar and became a community volunteer. I support 120 women from artisanal fishing families in income-generating activities, growing nutrient-rich vegetables, and providing basic literacy, business skills, and nutrition knowledge. Despite challenges like uncertain marine catches and fishing bans, their livelihoods are improving. – Jannatul.

Bridging the Gap
Women Community Volunteers are recruited from fishing villages for their reliability and deep ties within their communities. These young women play a crucial role by engaging women in income-generating activities, organizing business literacy schools and meetings, promoting savings, and conducting awareness sessions on gender, nutrition, and biodiversity conservation. They receive specialized training in sustainable livelihood practices, nutrition-sensitive interventions, and facilitation skills to operationalize 169 Women Income and Nutrition Groups (WINGs). They manage 169 Business Literacy Schools, supporting 5,007 WING members through 24 sessions focused on business literacy, nutrition, gender equality, and biodiversity conservation. Community Volunteers play a crucial role in the ECOFISH II initiative by facilitating conditional cash transfers, enabling women to start their small homestead businesses and connect with local service markets.

Through a gender-sensitive approach, these volunteers directly engage with women, bridging the gap between technical knowledge and its practical application. They assist women in developing skills for homestead farming, small-scale business, poultry, fish feed plant https://www.zenopelletmachine.com/product/floating-fish-feed-production-line/ ,and goat rearing—all of which provide much-needed supplemental income and improve household food security. Moreover, these practices support reducing the dependency on fishing during seasonal bans and adverse climatic events.

At the Intersection of Income, Nutrition and Biodiversity
Through partnerships with local NGOs, Community Volunteers guide women in developing small-scale businesses, such as homestead gardens, goat and poultry rearing, and safe dry fish production. These activities not only provide women with a steady source of income but also contribute to better nutrition by increasing access to fresh vegetables, eggs, and meat. Additionally, women learn about the nutritional benefits of integrating diverse food sources into their diets, such as lean proteins from poultry and fish. This dual focus on income generation and nutrition-sensitive farming is critical in regions where malnutrition is a persistent challenge, particularly for children and pregnant women.

The activities promoted by the Community Volunteers are designed not just to improve income and nutrition but also to align with broader goals of marine and coastal biodiversity conservation. By engaging women in income generating activities ECOFISH II encourages a shift away from unsustainable fishing practices that deplete marine resources. These income-generating activities give women an alternative means of livelihood, which indirectly contributes to marine conservation by reducing the community's dependency on illegal fishing.

Empowering Women and Changing Household Dynamics
I support in empowering local women with basic education, guidance in alternative income generating activities, homestead gardening, and raising awareness about biodiversity conservation, savings, gender equality, and nutrition. Once an ordinary member of my community, I am now recognized, respected, and appreciated for my hard work. From being a completely unknown individual, I have become everyone’s beloved. " - Sharmin.