DHAKA, Aug 28, 2020 (BSS)–Usually they pass idle time during the monsoon, an off-season for dry fish workers, but this year dry fish worker Rehana Akter of Cox’s Bazar area faces a hard time due to Covid-19 pandemic that left her out of job for last four to five months.
Not only Rehana Akter, all labourers of this sector are passing a terrible monsoon due to financial crisis as they have become jobless for over last four months due to Covid-19. Most of them failed to repay their previous advances they generally take from the dry fish producers with a commitment of doing work during the season. Moreover, they have taken advances again from the dry fish owners to run their families.
In Bangladesh, dry fish production period spans from September of a year to May of the next year but a significant portion of dry fish is produced in–April to May – due to favorable weather. This year, dry fish production remained suspended in the peak season due to coronavirus pandemic.
The dry fish labourers usually do not have enough work during the monsoon from June to August. That is why they have to meet their family expenses during the period from their savings or taking money as advance from the fish processing unit owners.
“Like many other labourers, I have been sitting idle for more three months but I had to arrange food for my five children. My husband died suddenly a few years ago,” said Rehana, a labourer of Najirartek dry fish village under Cox’s Bazar Sadar Upazila.
Rehana said she has taken Taka 5,000 as advance from dry fish unit owner for her family. She could not repay the advance money she took last year. So, in the upcoming season, she will face extra burden to repay the money.
Like Rehena Akter, Momtaj Begum has also faced difficulties due to Covid-19 pandemic. She could not repay her previous loan. Moreover, she has taken another loan in the season which will create extra burden in the upcoming season.
“Last monsoon, I borrowed Taka 6,000 from a dry fish unit owner with a condition to repay the money the outgoing season. I couldn’t repay the whole amount. Moreover, I have taken another advance” said Momtaz, working in Najirartek dry fish village in Cox’s Bazar.
Atikullah Sawdagor, the president of the Najirartek Dry Fish Traders Cooperative Society, said they produce most of the dry fish during in the last few months of a season.
“But, this year the dry fish production came down to almost a zero level because of non-availability of fish as the fishermen were afraid of going to sea to catch fish amid coronavirus pandemic. We also faced transportation crisis to bring fish from Chattogram for processing,” he added.
He said Najirartek dry fish village has incurred a loss of about Taka 100 crore in the outgoing season.
Around 30,000 workers, with two-thirds women, work in 1,040 dried fish processing units in the Najirartek dry fish village and most of them work on daily wage basis, he said.
Civic Engagement and Capacity Development Specialist of the CLIMB project under WINROCK Foundation Md Tanvir Sharif said loabourers in the dry fish sector will face more difficulties in the upcoming season due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
He urged authorities concerned to accelerate the government’s different social safety net programmes, including widow allowance, old age allowance, maternity allowance, and different relief programmes for the people involved in dry fish processing sector.
There are around 50 dry fish villages in the coastal districts – Cox’s Bazar, Khulna and Satkhira – where over one lakh people are directly involved in the sector.