Resiliency of livelihood and empowerment of women: Results of a cash-based intervention in Bangladesh's Lalmonirhat District

ABSTRACT

Almost every year, the north-western part of Bangladesh faces acute flash floods causing property damage and loss of livelihood. The 2017 flood severely affected Lalmonirhat District, where in 2019 several organizations provided cash incentives as an aid to recovery of livelihoods and empowerment of women. This study explores the use of cash-based intervention (CBI) for livelihood restoration and empowerment of women. A qualitative exploratory research design was employed using a questionnaire survey, focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews. Due to COVID-19, a follow-up phone survey was conducted in July 2020, revealing that CBI led to diversified income sources. The average inflation-adjusted income for beneficiaries was BDT17442 per month. About 52% of respondents believed CBI was highly effective, while 44% found CBI moderately helpful. In only 2% of cases was it fruitless due to the death of cattle. The daily income increased by BDT83-227 for Cluster-A (50% of respondents), BDT228-371 for Cluster-B (42% of respondents), and BDT372-517 for Cluster-C (8% of respondents). Among other occupations, livestock rearing made a significant profit, specifically for those who received minimal monetary CBI support. Following CBI and training, 100% of female respondents opined that males and females should have equal rights. About 93% of female respondents found improvement in self-confidence, self-esteem, and decision-making capacity attributable to participation in training and meetings to which they did not have access previously. About 93% of females felt that after empowerment training, they were able to reduce incidents of domestic violence. They enjoyed greater freedom in household and social decisions, greater independence in income, and improved equality in attitudes. CBI could be implemented on a large scale in disaster-affected communities to recover livelihoods, increase income sources, engage women in the workforce, and empower women.