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In the present study, nutritional status was assessed using dietary diversity of fish and non-fish farming households in Mymensingh district of Bangladesh. It has determined the incidence of poverty in fish and non-fish farm households through a comparative analysis of family profile, food consumption, calories, and protein intake. A total of 420 farms were selected for data collection using structured questionnaires with 210 fish and 210 non-fish farm families. The study using both descriptive and functional analysis revealed that the respondent age of both farms was 45.10 years, family size was 5.70, average education was 4.64 schooling years, and average farm size was 0.514 hectares. As a result, due to the increase in household income, fish farm families improved their food consumption, calories, and protein intake in comparison with non-fish farms. On a direct calorie intake (DCI) basis, the overall absolute and hardcore poverty levels of fish farm households were 32 percent and 18 percent, respectively, while those of non-fish farm households were 22 percent and 10 percent, respectively. Therefore, the incidence of poverty was higher in non-fish farming families than in fish farming families. In principle, provision of various forms of government assistance through the Department of Fisheries (DOF) will further intensify and strengthen fish farming, which will easily bring fallow and uncultivated lands of the area under fish farming. Moreover, it is possible to inspire the younger generation through this research that will help them to become a fish farm-based entrepreneur. The main conclusion of the present study is that fish farming is more positively related to household income, family food intake, and nutritional status than any other type of farming.

In the present study, nutritional status was assessed using dietary diversity of fish and non-fish farming households in Mymensingh district of Bangladesh. It has determined the incidence of poverty in fish and non-fish farm households through a comparative analysis of family profile, food consumption, calories, and protein intake. A total of 420 farms were selected for data collection using structured questionnaires with 210 fish and 210 non-fish farm families. The study using both descriptive and functional analysis revealed that the respondent age of both farms was 45.10 years, family size was 5.70, average education was 4.64 schooling years, and average farm size was 0.514 hectares. As a result, due to the increase in household income, fish farm families improved their food consumption, calories, and protein intake in comparison with non-fish farms. On a direct calorie intake (DCI) basis, the overall absolute and hardcore poverty levels of fish farm households were 32 percent and 18 percent, respectively, while those of non-fish farm households were 22 percent and 10 percent, respectively. Therefore, the incidence of poverty was higher in non-fish farming families than in fish farming families. In principle, provision of various forms of government assistance through the Department of Fisheries (DOF) will further intensify and strengthen fish farming, which will easily bring fallow and uncultivated lands of the area under fish farming. Moreover, it is possible to inspire the younger generation through this research that will help them to become a fish farm-based entrepreneur. The main conclusion of the present study is that fish farming is more positively related to household income, family food intake, and nutritional status than any other type of farming. ; Peer reviewed

Publisher Copyright: © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. ; Hilsa fish (Tenualosa ilisha) have become an essential factor behind the well-being of the fishing community, giving fishers their identity as a source of cultural heritage. A field survey was conducted to understand the socio-economic conditions of hilsa fishers at the Meghna river estuary of Chandpur District using well-structured questionnaire interviews (N = 250) with hilsa fishers. The survey revealed that fishers' livelihoods and living conditions were still below average due to low literacy levels, lack of professional skills, and low incomes. More than two-thirds of the fishers were entirely dependent on hilsa fishing, while more than one-third had between 11 and 20 years of fishing experience. More than two-thirds of the fishers did not have an alternative occupation during ban periods, and the incentives provided by the government were not adequately received by half of the fishers. Fishers were divided into three groups according to their dependence on hilsa fishing. Significant differences were found between these groups in terms of the age of fishers, annual income from fishing, and annual fishing activity days. Therefore, the government, Fisheries cooperatives, NGOs, and other relevant organizations must unite to support fishers for sustainable hilsa fishery management. ; Peer reviewed

AbstractBanking plays a vital role in the financial life of an industry, and the significance of banks can be realized from the fact that they are measured as to be the life‐blood of the modern economy. The Banking industry is considered as the mirror of any country. Banks are especially crucial for developing economies like Bangladesh, which has 57 listed banks. Due to increased competition, banks are trying to grab a new and growing market segment like the students' segment. So, there is a gap to explore student's purchase intention toward banking service as the intention is one of the critical predictors of behavior. Banks utilize service marketing strategies, a key concept of service marketing, to retain existing customers, and attract new ones. Therefore, this paper addressed the impact of a service marketing mix on the purchase intention of banking service among university students in Dhaka city, the capital of Bangladesh. The results should enable marketers to detect the most critical and significant drivers affecting the purchase intention of university students. All the elements of the service marketing mix except place, promotion, and physical evidence were significantly related to purchasing intention. It has implications for bank service marketers regarding the practical design of mix strategy of service marketing for student segments.

The south-east coast, specifically the Cox's Bazar region, of Bangladesh has achieved a tremendous impetus for producing a large volume of dried fish by involving thousands of marginalized coastal people. This study aimed to assess the socio-economic profile, livelihood strategies, and resilience of the communities engaged in fish drying on the south-east coast using a mixed-methods approach and an Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). The study's findings revealed that communities involved in drying were socio-economically undeveloped due to their lower literacy, unstable incomes, and labor-intensive occupations. Apart from notable child labor employed in fish drying in Nazirertek, female workers had relatively higher participation than males. Nevertheless, the female workers had less control over their daily wages and reported working at USD 3.54–5.89 per day, which was relatively lower than male workers who received USD 4.15–8.31 per day. Through fish drying activities, very few workers, producers, and traders were found to be self-reliant. In contrast, the livelihoods of the workers were not as secure as the processors and traders. In addition to suffering from various shocks and constraints, dried fish processors and workers, dried fish traders, off-season income, an abundance of fish species, fish drying facilities, trader's association, and social interrelationship played a significant role in maintaining community resilience. The study recommends appropriate interventions to alternative income diversification options, strong collaboration between communities, local authorities, and government for sustainable livelihoods and better community resilience.

Kaptai Lake (KL), the largest inland watershed in Bangladesh (ca. 700 km(2)) and one of Southeast Asia's largest artificial reservoirs, features an abundant variety of indigenous fishery species. Moreover, it provides a plethora of ecological benefits to society. Nevertheless, the KL is suffering from multidimensional natural and anthropogenic stressors that threaten these wetlands' sustainability. Though the legal framework assures sustainable conservation of fisheries resources, the implementation scenarios of fisheries laws, regulations, and policies in the KL wetland are insufficient. This study aimed at assessing the fisher's perception of the regulation implementation efficiency of the Protection and Conservation Fish Act of 1950, while analyzing the effectiveness of the legal framework in the context of biodiversity conservation and the management sustainability of KL. By integrating qualitative and quantitative data collected through participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) tools viz. 225 interviews with fishers, four focus group discussions, and 12 key informant interviews, the investigation was performed in four selected areas in KL. The findings show that fishers routinely disregard laws and restrictions of the Protection and Conservation of Fish Act 1950 due to various socioeconomic and political forces. Although the annual fish harvest rate from KL appears to be increasing, the lake is losing its charismatic biological diversity primarily due to inappropriate and ineffective enforcement of fishing regulations. Many fishers believe that they still follow the act's significant laws and regulations while being involved in several destructive and prohibited fishing practices. There is a link between community awareness, the scope of the act's provisions, the effectiveness of its enforcement, and the strength of its execution. One of the leading causes of biodiversity loss in the KL is inadequate and ineffective fishing regulations. Improvement in the enforcement of the fishing act may be the prominent option to ensure better biodiversity conservation and sustainable management of this wetland. This result calls for functional and policy attention to revising the regulations to account for socioeconomic and political elements contributing to environmental degradation. This study also highlights the urgent need for transdisciplinary collaboration initiatives and synchronous cooperation among the agencies in order to effectively implement the fishing laws and contribute to better conservation and sustainability of the Kaptai lake fisheries resources. ; Peer reviewed

BACKGROUND: Like other countries in Asia, measles-rubella (MR) vaccine coverage in Bangladesh is suboptimal whereas 90-95 % coverage is needed for elimination of these diseases. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MOHFW) of the Government of Bangladesh implemented MR campaign in January-February 2014 to increase MR vaccination coverage. Strategically, the MOHFW used both routine immunization centres and educational institutions for providing vaccine to the children aged 9 months to <15 years. The evaluation was carried out to assess the impact of the campaign on MR vaccination and routine immunization services. METHODS: Both quantitative and qualitative evaluations were done before and after implementation of the campaign. Quantitative data were presented with mean (standard deviation, SD) for continuous variables and with proportion for categorical variables. The overall and age- and sex-specific coverage rates were calculated for each region and then combined. Categorical variables were compared by chi-square statistics. Multiple logistic regression analysis were performed to estimate odds ratios (OR) and 95 % confidence intervals (CI) of coverage associated with covariates, with adjustment for other covariates. Qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis. RESULTS: The evaluations found MR coverage was very low (<13 %) before the campaign and it rose to 90 % after the campaign. The pre-post campaign difference in MR coverage in each stratum was highly significant (p < 0.001). The campaign achieved high coverage despite relatively low level (23 %) of interpersonal communication with caregivers through registration process. Child registration was associated with higher MR coverage (OR 2.91, 95 % CI 1.91-4.44). Children who attended school were more likely to be vaccinated (OR 8.97, 95 % CI 6.17-13.04) compared to those who did not attend school. Children of caregivers with primary or secondary or higher education had higher coverage compared to children of caregivers with no formal education. Most caregivers mentioned contribution of the campaign in vaccination for the children not previously vaccinated. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the evaluation indicated that the campaign was successful in terms of improving MR coverage and routine immunization services. The evaluation provided an important guideline for future evaluation of similar efforts in Bangladesh and elsewhere.