Investing in carp seed quality improvements in homestead aquaculture: lessons from Bangladesh

The impacts of integrated homestead pond-dike systems in relation to production, consumption and seasonality in central north Bangladesh

“…The influx of many new producers to the sector over the last decade following relatively intensive practices contributed significantly, while the smaller homestead pond farmers generally continued to follow less intensive practices and contribute a smaller share of overall national production (Hernandez et al., ). The recent studies conducted by Jahan, Belton, Ali, Dhar and Ara (2015), Karim et al, and Karim et al, () also support the above evidence as they noticed that fish production from homestead ponds were 1,759 kg/ha, 1,841 kg/ha and 1,764.67 kg/ha respectively which are very similar to the level of fish production (2,069.88 kg/ha reported in this study conducted more than a decade before. This suggest that the potential of homestead based small scale aquaculture over years remains unfulfilled while consumption and household use still remain important motivations for households to manage homestead ponds (Belton et al, ; Jahan et al, ).…”

“…However, the level of productivity from homestead pond‐dike systems has remained relatively stagnant, a situation which could be further improved through relatively modest and available technological and capital intensification principally through enhanced quality and quantity of nutrient inputs. (Karim et al., ).…”

“…Training in IAA techniques focused on homestead fish production has been demonstrated to be effective at enhancing productivity, encouraging greater use of recycling on‐farm and reduced levels of inorganic fertilizer use in favour of organic (Karim et al., ; Murshed‐E‐Jahan & Pemsl, ). The more frequent stocking of seed by rural households reflects both their higher consumption frequency and dependency on fish from their own ponds than peri‐urban households.…”

“…Pangas was introduced in the early 1990s in Mymensingh district, north of the capital city Dhaka, which spread to other districts of the country and rapidly evolved as one of the economically important activity with long backward and forward linkages providing diverse livelihood opportunities for a wide range of value chain actors (Haque, ). However, the emergence such commercial fish farms has occurred especially in the main fish farming area of Bangladesh and elsewhere in Asia where there are abundant water resources, communicated well to market, better access to inputs existed (Belton et al., ; Karim, ; Karim et al., ).…”

How does gendered vulnerability shape the adoption and impact of sustainable livelihood interventions in an era of global climate change?

“…In general, aquaculture appears to provide an opportunity for both women and men to diversify their income. When women and men participate in aquaculture activities, they are roughly equally productive, illustrating the attractiveness of this activity for women (Lebel et al 2009, Karim et al 2016. However, the high capital costs of establishing aquaculture ponds can make it particularly challenging for women to adopt, necessitating interventions to provide credit as well as training and technical support.…”