Bangladesh Ship Breaking Industry and Livelihood Assessment of Out-Migrant Workers: A Study of Southern - Northern Region in Bangladesh

Ahmed Imtiaz Chowdhury; Saiful  Islam; Samiha Tasnim  Era

doi:10.53639/ijssr.v5i3.256

Authors

Ahmed Imtiaz Chowdhury Independent University Bangladesh
Saiful Islam Chittagong University
Samiha Tasnim Era Shahid Bulbul Government College, Pabna

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.53639/ijssr.v5i3.256

Keywords:

Shipbreaking Industry, Out-Migrant Workers, Overseas Migration, Livelihood Status

Abstract

Since 1971, the shipbreaking industry in Bangladesh has grown rapidly, employing approximately 40,000 to 50,000 underprivileged workers from the most underdeveloped regions of Bangladesh. After working for 15-20 years, they leave this industry for different sorts of physical problems, which lead to a low quality of life. Therefore, this paper aims to explore the livelihood status of the out-migrant workers in the shipbreaking industry of Bangladesh. The instruments used for this research were a semi-closed-ended survey questionnaire, in-depth interviews, ethnographic participant observation, and secondary research. The respondents are from the southern and northern parts of Bangladesh, aged 18 years and older. This study has discovered no significant differences between northern and southern out-migrant workers in asset ownership, goods, or housing quality. However, the southern out-migrant population earned relatively more than the northern migrants due to better access to capital and institutional support. This study also shows that after working a few years, young people desire to do external migration for better income opportunities. Despite minimal overall improvement in livelihood status, southern migrants earn comparatively better. Therefore, the government and other stakeholders must bridge the gap of unequal socio-economic development between the southern and northern regions.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Abdullah, Hasan Muhammad, M Golam Mahboob, Mehmuna R Banu, and Dursun Zafer Seker. “Monitoring the Drastic Growth of Ship Breaking Yards in Sitakunda: A Threat to the Coastal Environment of Bangladesh.” Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 185 (2013): 3839–51.

Alam, Shawkat, and Abdullah Faruque. “Legal Regulation of the Shipbreaking Industry in Bangladesh: The International Regulatory Framework and Domestic Implementation Challenges.” Marine Policy 47 (2014): 46–56.

Apeti, Dennis A, David R Whitall, Anthony S Pait, Angel Dieppa, Adam G Zitello, and Gunnar G Lauenstein. “Characterization of Land-Based Sources of Pollution in Jobos Bay, Puerto Rico: Status of Heavy Metal Concentration in Bed Sediment.” Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 184 (2012): 811–30.

Das, Jewel, and Muhammed Ali Shahin. “Ship Breaking and Its Future in Bangladesh.” Journal of Ocean and Coastal Economics 6, no. 2 (2019): 9.

Gbadebo, A M, A M Taiwo, and O B Ola. “Effects of Crude Oil and Spent Oil on Clarias Garipinus: A Typical Marine Fish.” American Journal of Environmental Sciences 5, no. 6 (2009): 753.

Hoque, M, and M M Emran. “Role of Ship-Breaking Industries in Bangladesh and ILO Guidelines: A Critical Discussion.” Global Journal of E-Economics 16, no. 3 (2016): 9.

Hossain, Khandakar Akhter. “Evaluation of Potential, Prospect and Challenge of Bangladeshi Shipbuilding in Light of Global Contest,” 2010.

Hossain, M Shahadat, Sayedur R Chowdhury, S M Abdul Jabbar, S M Saifullah, and M Ataur Rahman. “Occupational Health Hazards of Ship Scrapping Workers at Chittagong Coastal Zone, Bangladesh.” Chiang Mai J. Sci 35, no. 2 (2008): 370–81.

Hossain, Md Shakhaoat, Abu Naieum Muhammad Fakhruddin, Muhammed Alamgir Zaman Chowdhury, and Siew Hua Gan. “Impact of Ship-Breaking Activities on the Coastal Environment of Bangladesh and a Management System for Its Sustainability.” Environmental Science & Policy 60 (2016): 84–94.

Kahyarara, Godius, and D Simon. “Maritime Transport in Africa: Challenges, Opportunities, and an Agenda for Future Research.” In Proc. UNCTAD Ad Hoc Expert Meeting, 1–49, 2018.

Kutub, Md Juel Rana, Nishat Falgunee, Shahreen Muntaha Nawfee, and Yasin Wahid Rabby. “Ship Breaking Industries and Their Impacts on the Local People and Environment of Coastal Areas of Bangladesh.” Human and Social Studies 6, no. 2 (2017): 35–58.

Muhibbullah, Md, Morshed Hossan Molla, Kazi Md Barket Ali, Md Iqbal Sarwar, and Nazmul Hossain. “Health Hazards and Risks of Ship Breaking Activities in Bangladesh: An Environmental Impact Assessment Approach.” European Journal of Advanced Research in Biological and Life Sciences 2, no. 1 (2014): 1–15.

Muhibbullah, Muhammad. “Health Hazards and Risks Vulnerability of Ship Breaking Workers: A Case Study on Sitakunda Ship Breaking Industrial Area of Bangladesh.” Journal of Geography and Regional Planning 2, no. 8 (2013): 172–84.

Rabbi, Hasan Ruhan, and Aevelina Rahman. “Ship Breaking and Recycling Industry of Bangladesh; Issues and Challenges.” Procedia Engineering 194 (2017): 254–59.

Rahman, Sohanur. “Aspects and Impacts of Ship Recycling in Bangladesh.” Procedia Engineering 194 (2017): 268–75.

Sarraf, Maria, Frank Stuer-Lauridsen, Milen Dyoulgerov, Robin Bloch, Susan Wingfield, and Roy Watkinson. “The Ship Breaking and Recycling Industry in Bangladesh and Pakistan,” 2010.

Shameem, Kazi A B M. “The Role of the Ship Breaking Industry in Bangladesh and Its Future with Special Emphasis on Capacity Building through Education and Training,” 2012.

Siddiquee, N A. “Impact of Ship Breaking on Marine Fish Diversity of the Bay of Bengal.” DFID-SUFER Project, Dhaka, Bangladesh, 2004, 46.

Wu, Wei-Te, Yu-Jen Lin, Chung-Yi Li, Perng-Jy Tsai, Chun-Yuh Yang, Saou-Hsing Liou, and Trong-Neng Wu. “Cancer Attributable to Asbestos Exposure in Shipbreaking Workers: A Matched-Cohort Study.” PloS One 10, no. 7 (2015): e0133128.