Ferdous Jahan

Contrasting adaptation responses by squatters and low-income tenants in Khulna, Bangladesh

This paper examines patterns of adaptive behaviour in low-income settlements(1) in Khulna, Bangladesh’s third largest city. It contrasts the adaptive behaviours of “squatter” households who “own” their land with those of tenants who rent dwellings from private landlords, and finds significant differences between the adaptive behaviours of owners and renters. This is important, as most knowledge about low-income settlements in Bangladesh originates from “owned” settlements – often called “public settlements”, as the land is officially public land. But the future growth of low-income settlements in the country is likely to be increasingly on private land, with rented dwellings. Policy lessons generated from settlements with “squatters” may be inappropriate for the next generation of “slums” that will house millions of rural migrants and people displaced by climate change. The conclusions argue that agencies seeking to assist low-income households in Bangladesh will need to craft different strategies for settlements according to different types of land tenure.

Poverty and Climate Change in Urban Bangladesh (Climurb): An Analytical Framework

Around 40 percent of Bangladesh’s population are poor people for whom a variable and unpredictable climate can critically restrict livelihood options. This is true in rural and urban areas alike, but this study focuses on the latter. Urban poverty continues to be neglected in research, policy and action for climate change adaptation in the country. The study builds on three propositions: (i) poor urban communities are places where physical and socioeconomic vulnerability coincide; (ii) urban areas are exposed to three forms of climate change impact: rapid-onset events, gradual-onset processes, and cascade effects; and (iii) poor urban people are already adapting to emergent climate change impacts by actively developing various practices. The analytical framework places a strong emphasis on poor people’s adaptation practices in order to understand their agency, cultural resources and economic strategies and the structural factors that both support and constrain their agency. The practices are examined in terms of three key elements: the socio-economic resources of poor urban households and communities; institutions and political economy; and external actors and resources. Six low-income settlements have been chosen for case studies from three cities – Dhaka, Chittagong and Khulna. Data collection involves: mini-surveys; qualitative methods; dialogues with local academics, policymakers and civil society groups; and action research. Key analytical findings include the identification and analysis of existing practices under five broad themes (e.g. livelihoods, built environment, networks, institutions, and external supports).

Bureau Bashing and Public Service Motivation: A Case for the Civil Service of Bangladesh

This paper explains the negative impacts of bureau-bashing on the Public Service Motivation (PSM) of civil servants. It differentiates between policy bashing and rhetoric bashing and argues that while policy bashing may be constructive in nature, rhetoric bashing often de‐motivates bureaucrats in terms of their rational, normative and affective motives (Perry and Wise, 1990 Perry, 1996) In Bangladesh context, in critiquing public service, the previous attempts aimed to analyze the structural problems and recent attacks are directed towards the bureaucrats themselves. However, there are few empirical studies to measure the performance of bureaucrats by analyzing the initiatives they take and the problems they face in carrying out their responsibilities. Based on Perry & Wises (1990) PSM model, we argue that in Bangladesh, bureau bashing is mostly rhetoric and thus it might have created a negative impact on PSM amongst bureaucrats, contributing to the poor state of governance.

Community and institutional responses to the challenges facing poor urban people in Khulna, Bangladesh in an era of climate change

Poor urban people in Bangladesh are already experiencing numerous climate-related problems because of their multiple forms of vulnerability and multiple sources of deprivation. Their problems differ greatly, both within and across settlements and cities, and so do the practices by which they are trying to tackle them. Various factors – physical, tenure-related, socio-political and institutional – contribute to this great variety of problems and practices. In this paper, we focus on Khulna City to identify the challenges facing Khulna’s poor people, understand the practices they are developing, and examine the role that institutions are playing in supporting/constraining these practices. Khulna is third largest city of Bangladesh, located in the southwest region, where the consequences of climate change are expected to be particularly severe. In order to capture the main features of Khulna’s diverse low-income settlements, we examined two of the most common forms of settlement – a public (Rupsha Ghat) and a private (Bagmara) settlement. A quantitative mini-survey was followed by detailed qualitative interviews and participatory exercises. In many ways Khulna’s poor are responding well to their problems, such as through adjusting their livelihoods and reducing risks through individual and collective actions, and built environment changes and adaptation. People have more opportunities for advancement in public than private settlements, in terms of both developing more effective practices and having comparatively fewer constraints. However, several factors are constraining what they can achieve, such as geography and settings, lack of socio-political platform, ineffective support from public institutions, aid and NGO dependency, and limits to their own agency and structures. The paper concludes by arguing that improving the formal and informal processes of urban governance is central to strengthening the capacity of people in low-income settlements to cope with both existing problems and the intensified problems created by climate change.

Power and influence of islam-based political parties in Bangladesh: perception versus reality

Bangladesh has received scholarly attention about the extent and nature of Islamism in the political domain. We argue that, to analyze the significance of religion in the political process, it is essential to consider the role of religion in both influencing the policy and electoral outcome. Based on an in-depth qualitative study during the most recent election of 2008, we review previous elections results and the policy influence of religion-based parties; we argue that, in Bangladesh, Islamic parties’ policy influence is very high and electoral success is very low. A deeply entrenched civil religion in the form of nationalistic identity bars religion from playing a significant role in influencing the voting behavior of the citizens. The mainstream political parties have so far failed to recognize the significance of this civil religion.

Balancing Work and Family: Women in Bangladesh Civil Service

This article explores the reasons for continued low rates of participation of women in the BCS despite having favorable economic and social, as well as pro-women affirmative recruitment policies. The study finds that women face intra-bureaucratic structural and cultural constraints when they enter the BCS. At the same time, women bureaucrats face issues at home when they try to balance work and family roles. These two-prong constraints further discourage women to enter and progress in the BCS. Based on empirical research, this article identifies gender discrimination, sexual harassment, overwork, and behavior of male colleagues as major constraints in the work place. At the household level, they endure hostility in interpersonal relationships, arguments with husbands, and being blamed for children’s poor performance at school. In this situation, women bureaucrats adopt diverse strategies to balance work and family roles. This paper explores the scope and limits of these strategies.