Between 2013 and 2021, the governments of Bangladesh and the Netherlands spent in excess of Tk800 crore under a project called the Blue Gold Program, aiming at establishing and empowering community organizations to sustainably manage their water resources in some of the polder zones of Bangladesh’s porous coastline.
Thanks to the initiative, the Blue Gold helped rehabilitate and improve the main water infrastructure in 22 coastal polders in south-west Bangladesh and empowered the local communities in the forms of Water Management Organizations (WMOs) to be the drivers of economic development in the polders using the improved water infrastructure.
Since the program ended, communities living in the polder zones have not been getting the benefits, partly due to the Bangladesh Water Development Board’s indifference and partly to political pressures.
The Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) and the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) implemented the Blue Gold program from March 2013 to December 2021.
A recent study on water management challenges in the polders conducted by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and the United International University (UIU) team, under the Asian Mega Delta Program of CGIAR, found out that communities that were empowered during the 2013-2021 Blue Gold initiative now often cannot operate independently due to political and other pressures. Their control over sluice gates is no longer there.
Headquartered in France’s Montpellier, CGIAR is the world’s largest global agricultural innovation network. The CGIAR Initiative on Asian Mega-Deltas (AMD) aims to create resilient, inclusive and productive deltas that maintain socio-ecological integrity, adapt to climatic and other stressors and support human prosperity and wellbeing.
There are 1.2 million hectares of farmland in Bangladesh’s coastal polder zone. Starting from the 1960s, low lying tracts of land in the south-western coastal zone were enclosed by earthen embankments to create polders, which protect coastal communities from tidal floods and surges. There are now 139 polders enclosed by embankments of an overall length of nearly 6,000 km.
During the project period, Blue Gold assisted WMOs (consisting of community members) with arrangements and procedures for water management, and advice on how to optimize profitability through the adoption of modern crop technologies, crop selection and intensification, and the collective purchase of inputs and sales of produce. Blue Gold’s differentiated approach ensured that benefits reached not only households with access to land but also the many landless households, as well as men and women farmers.
What the beneficiaries say now
People living in the polders within the Blue Gold command area in Khulna, Patuakhali, Barguna now say that the cropping intensity of thousands of acres of agricultural land could be increased and yields doubled if water management issues were resolved. They described obstacles posing challenges despite their mandated role in local water management.
In a report posted on CGIAR website, researchers quoted the beneficiaries, saying: “No matter how much we try, critical water bodies like canals, river branches, and beels (large perennial water bodies) are leased out to vested interest groups, which hinders crop cultivation.”
It said: “Since the project (Blue Gold) period ended, no one listens to us and never comes to check on our activities, even though we are authorized by the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) to maintain local water management.”
Community members living in polders say that BWDB gave them registration and had formed WMOs under the project, but they (the BWDB) no longer check on them. While BWDB authorized them to continue managing activities beyond the project period, the absence of oversight leaves these groups adrift.
Way forward
To address the issue and share study findings, IRRI and other stakeholders held a meeting in Barguna recently in the presence of the Deputy Commissioner and representatives of the lead implementing agencies like BWDB, DAE and community members.
According to the meeting notes, over time, water management issues and a lack of active involvement by BWDB have posed challenges to realizing the expected benefits. Recent discussions with DAE officials in ten other coastal districts identified water management as the single most crucial challenge in coastal agricultural development.
Md Rafiqul Islam, Deputy Commissioner of Barguna, states: "The Agriculture Department has good manpower and a solid management setup. We need to prioritize and identify the areas we need to focus on. I heartily invite such research that provides us with more insight."
Dr Ahmad Salahuddin, a senior associate scientist at IRRI, Bangladesh, said: "Our study highlights that effective water management is paramount for agricultural development in coastal districts. Addressing these challenges can significantly reduce the issues faced by farmers, ensuring better crop yields and sustainable livelihoods."
The study recommends revitalizing Water Management Organizations (WMOs) under a sustainable approach and proposes transferring the monitoring responsibility of polders from BWDB to DAE. DAE's familiarity with agricultural issues and routine farmer interactions position them as an appropriate authority for overseeing WMOs.
The district-level meeting presented the study findings, discussed the roles of various agencies, and gathered suggestions from farmers and various organizations. The recommendations will be presented at a national-level conference soon.