Dialogue stresses recognition of women in fisheries

Fisheries and Livestock Adviser Farida Akhtar highlighted the urgent need to include more women in government-issued fishing cards, underscoring that women hold just 4% of these cards, despite their critical and underrecognized contributions to the sector.

She called greater attention to empowering women as a central step toward sustainable fisheries.

She spoke as the chief guest at the National Policy Dialogue on Sustainable Fisheries Management, organised by the Centre for Natural Resource Studies (CNRS) at the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel in Dhaka on Wednesday.

Emphasising women's recognition as a core issue, the adviser stressed that legal barriers excluding women—especially widows—from critical fishing resources must be addressed. She noted that reforms in the draft Fisheries Act 2025 are intended to advance legal recognition and support for women fishers as a policy priority.

Akhtar also recommended that the relevant authorities remove crabs and oysters from the Forest Department's definition and directly grant water reservoir leases to practising fishers. She urged continuous coordination with the finance and land ministries to expand support for fishing families during bans and to ensure that genuine fishers obtain access to Jalmahal leases.

Fisheries Department Director General Dr Abdur Rouf, who attended as a special guest, stated that women fish workers earn 30% less than men and emphasised the need to increase their participation in registration. Out of 1.7 million registered fishers, only 44,000 are women, underscoring a significant gender gap.

The event centred on empowering women fishers and advancing sustainable fisheries management, with experts and community representatives providing policy recommendations to further these primary goals.