More than 26,000 children of fishermen in Chandpur are deprived of basic education due to poverty.
Aminul Islam, fisheries officer of the district, said: “A total of 38,000 fishermen live in Charbhoirobi of Haimchar upazila in the district.”
Maximum children of theses families lead their lives by fishing in the Meghna and Padma rivers.
Manik Dewan, secretary of Awami Motshojibi League, said: “More than 26,000 school going children in the area have no chance to take education as they live under poverty-line.”
Rakib,10, of Bahoria village, said: “We cannot meet up our daily needs, let alone education.”
“My parents have been ill for a long time. So I have to catch fish to run the family,” he said.
Sulaiman, 12, another child of the village, said: “I have been catching fish in the rivers for last six years with my father.”
“I cannot think of going to school as my father is not able to afford the expenditure of the family,” he also said.
Fisherman Zakir Hossain of Harinapur village said: “The items of education are very costly which cannot be afforded by me. So I think not send my kid to school.”
Abdul Haque, another fisherman, said: “We are the inhabitants near the river. We have to fight against natural disasters regularly. So I think my kid should learn practically how to fight the natural disasters. The school does teach him it.”
Amena Begum, a female fisherman, said: “We want our children go to school. But poverty bars them to go to school.”
DM Shah Jahan, councillor of Chanpur municipality, said:“In these families, children also play the role of breadwinner.
“Direct and indirect costs of education are now higher that cannot be met. So children must work to support their families or their families can no longer afford to send them to school,” he said.
“The government wants to increase literacy and numeracy rates, it must urgently address the problem of primary school dropouts in the area,” he added.
When contacted, Nazma Begum, education officer of Sadar upazila, said: “We are trying to bring the children in the school. But the guardians do not show interest about it.”
“Recently we have arranged a discussion with the fishermen. They replied that they should not waste time of their kids by sending them to the school,” she added.
