Farmers' and public responses to the 1994-95 drought in Bangladesh : a case study.

Bibliography: p. 31-32

Droughts are recurrent features in Bangladesh. They affect plant growth, leading to loss of crop production, food shortages, and for many people, starvation. The main objective of this study was to examine the means by which residents of a drought affected area of Bangladesh cope with this hazard. Data used in this paper were collected during the summer of 1995 from 301 drought affected households located in the northern part of Bangladesh. The analysis of the data suggests that respondent households practiced an array of adjustments to mitigate adverse effects of the 1994-95 drought. While both high and low income households were affected by the drought, the analysis further indicates that households belonging to the lower socio-economic group suffered the most. Among all households they received the least support from the government. In fact, the governmental responses were delayed and inadequate to provide financial and other assistance to the drought victims. It is suggested that the government should be prepared for drought long before the occurence of such an event