Adaptation strategies to floods: A gender-based analysis of the farming-dependent char community in the Padma floodplain, Bangladesh

This paper examines the determinants affecting adaptation strategies adopted by men and women in char farming households in Zanjira, Bangladesh, to deal with floods. The term char land refers to a mid-channel island that periodically appears in the riverbed owing to accretion. The study used primary and secondary data. Primary data were collected from a household survey from 115 men and 128 women, interviews with key informants, focus group discussions and in-depth interviews with farmers. For a gender analysis, the study used two separate step-wise regression models. Results showed that significant variables determining adaptation strategies included agricultural land access, availability of agricultural labor, experience in farming, literacy, age, and training. Both regressions showed a good fit of the model. The higher adjusted R2 values for the female model revealed that the determinants included are more critical for flood adaptation strategies than those in the male model. Regression results revealed that agricultural land access, agricultural labor, and literacy were the most important determinants for both groups. Agriculture land access and literacy were more important for women than men. This suggests that women's land accessibility and literacy need to be improved to help them better adapt to floods. The influence of agricultural labor also seemed equally important for men and women. These findings inform useful policy recommendations for dealing with floods. Promoting less labor-intensive but more remunerative adaptation strategies would help men and women manage farming effectively.