Tens of hundreds of the extremely poor people, mostly women, living in the remote char areas, have been changing their fortune to become self-reliant through boosting animal husbandry sector in recent years.
The char people achieved the success following effective implementation of the comprehensive Chars Livelihoods Programme (CLP) by a number of NGOs since 2004 in ten northwestern riverine districts on the Brahmaputra basin.
Under the programme, 1.20 lakh extremely poor households living in char areas of Kurigram, Bogra, Gaibandha, Sirajganj, Jamalpur, Lalmonirhat, Nilphamari, Rangpur, Pabna and Tangail districts have so far become self-reliant.
Livelihoods Coordinator of CLP Dr. Mahbub Alam narrated the ongoing Multi-dimensional and comprehensive CLP activities being implemented by different NGOs in the remote and hardly reachable char village on the riverine char islands.
Some 55,000 poorest households were benefited under CLP phase-I during 2004-2010 and about 65,000 out of 75,000 households so far under phase-II (2010-2016) to improve livelihoods of 1.9 million extremely poor char people by 2016.
The CLP has been working with the extremely poor char households to improve livelihoods through providing package supports, assets and raising plinths for income generation activities since 2004 under adverse climatic situations, he said.
The UKaid through the Department for International Development (DFID) and Australian Government through Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) have been supporting for implementation of the CLP activities.
The Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives has been sponsoring implementation of the comprehensive programme with the management through Maxwell Stamp Plc.
Agriculture and Environment Coordinator Mamunur Rashid of RDRS Bangladesh, one of the implementing organisations, said the animal husbandry sector has been expanding fast on char areas in recent years bringing fortune to char people.
Thousands of the extremely poor families living in char areas have achieved self-reliance through animal husbandry side by side other income generation activities with CLP assistances to lead better life now.
Chilmari upazila chairman Shawkat Ali Sarker, Bir Bikram, said the char families have been rearing and fattening cows commercially to earn profits to add to their capitals after meeting expenses for living and education costs of their school-going children.
CLP beneficiaries Aklima, Kohinur, Saleha, Momena Lalbanu, Halima, Rahela, Ayesha, Delwara, Aklima, Rasheda, Shakila and Nazmun Nahar of different char villages narrated their unthinkable success stories through animal husbandry.
They have engaged their all-out efforts in taking special care of their reared bulls now to sell those at rates between Taka 60,000 and 80,000 in the local markets depending on their sizes on an average before the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha festivity.
Beneficiaries Sonavan, Hamida, Halima Begum and Moslema Khatun said they expect to sell their four to six healthier bulls, at Taka 65,000 for each, though they bought those two years back at Taka 22,000 for each.
Beneficiaries Rohiton Nesa, Masuma, Momena and Mozammel are expecting to sell 12 to 15 goats at Taka 72,000 to 100,000 before the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha festivity after buying those at Taka 30,000 to 42,000 a year ago.
