Projects  under this Programme  are:

• Dynamics of Rural Livelihood Systems (Poverty Elimination Through Rice Research Assistance (PETRRA) Project)

• SANEI-IV (Trade Liberalization and Bangladesh Agriculture: Impacts on Cropping Pattern, Resource Use Efficiency and Effective Incentives)

Dynamics of Rural Livelihood Systems (Poverty Elimination Through Rice Research Assistance (PETRRA) Project)

The Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) has successfully conducted the study titled “Dynamics of Livelihood Systems in Rural Bangladesh: Generation of Information for Facilitating Dialogues on Strategies and Policies Pertaining to Elimination of Poverty”. This was carried out as part of collaboration with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) on agricultural policy research and policy advocacy activities. The study was a sub-project of the Poverty Elimination through Rice Research Assistance (PETRRA) project of IRRI—funded by the DFID, UK. The DoLSys was an umbrella project where six Bnagladeshi institutes collaborated with IRRI Social Sciences Division. Dr. Mahabub Hossain, Head of the IRRI Social Sciences Division was the Team Leader and Dr. Uttam Kumar Deb, Research Fellow, CPD acted as the National Coordinator for the project.


Objectives:

The DoLSys project aimed to improve knowledge on the operation of rural household economy, recent changes in the impact of technologies, infrastructure, and institutions on poor households in Bangladesh. The information would help improve the capacity of policy makers through debate on policy options to improve livelihood of the rural poor. The project also went beyond understanding the role of rice cultivation in the household economy, and looked into understanding resource allocation among all crops and other farm and non-farm activities. Specifically, the project aimed to:

• assess the relationship between the asset base of the household and livelihood strategies and how it is mediated by the operation of the different organizations and institutions;

• analyze the determinants of technological progress and how it benefits different socioeconomic groups;

• study the interface between changes in the operations of seeds, land, labor, credit, and water markets and other institutions; and

• asses the contribution of technology, infrastructure, and institutions to eliminate poverty.
   

Project Output (CPD-IRRI component)

CPD-IRRI component of the Dynamics of Livelihood Systems (DoLSys) project successfully completed research reports and facilitated policy dialogues involving the different stakeholders of the Bangladesh civil society. Six policy dialogues were organized by CPD under the project. These were related on:

• seed delivery systems;

• promoting rural non-farm economy;

• impact of trade liberalization on the crop sector;

• biotechnology for rice improvement,

• participation of rural women in economic activities, and

• rural poverty mapping. Top ranking government officials, including Ministers and Secretaries of the different government agencies, political leaders, academicians, researchers and scientists from agriculture and development agencies, donors, NGOs, and journalists graced every dialogue.

Outputs from the policy dialogues were published as Dialogue Reports by CPD. Keynote presentations at the Dialogues were published as CPD Occasional Papers. The media also took part in dissemination of the dialogue output. The country’s leading newspapers published immediately after each dialogue articles on issues discussed and policy recommendations developed.
In addition to the policy dialogue, research activities conducted under the project have conclusive results and issues presented that are useful for developing policies to foster economic growth in rural households and reduce poverty. Research findings were also disseminated through workshops and journals. A list of publications under the DoLSys project is listed below.

 

Year wise output

2004

Policy Briefs
(Series Editor: Dr Uttam Kumar Deb)

• Hossain, M., A.M. Muzzam Husain and S.K. Datta (2004). Biotechnology for Rice Improvement. CPD-IRRI Policy Brief 5. Dhaka, Bangladesh: Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).

• S.P. Kam, Mahabub Hossain M.L. Bose, Tahmina Latiff, Abeed H. Chowdhury, S.G. Hussain, and Mahbub Ahmed (2004). Mapping Poverty for Rural Bangladesh: Implications for Pro-poor Development. CPD-IRRI Policy Brief 6. Dhaka, Bangladesh: Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).

• Hossain, M., T.R. Paris, M.L. Bose and A. Chowdhury (2004). Nature and Impact of Women’s Participation in Rural Economic Activities. CPD-IRRI Policy Brief 7. Dhaka, Bangladesh: Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).

Dialogue Reports
(Series Editor: Professor Rehman Sobhan, Assistant Editor: Dr Uttam Kumar Deb):

• CPD Dialogue Report No. 66: Promoting Rural Non-farm Economy: Is Bangladesh Doing Enough?  (June 2004)

• CPD Dialogue Report No. 67: Sustaining Agricultural Growth in Bangladesh: Should We Go for Biotechnology for Rice Improvement? (June 2004)

• CPD Dialogue Report No. 68: Women’s Contribution to Rural Economic Activities: Making the Invisible Visible. (July 2004)

• CPD Dialogue Report No. 69: Mapping Poverty for Rural Bangladesh: Implications for Pro-poor Development. (July 2004)

Occasional Papers
(Series Editor: Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya; Assistant Editor: Ms Anisatul Fatema Yousuf):

• CPD occasional Paper 39. Poverty Alleviation through Agriculture and Rural Development in Bangladesh. (July 2004)

• CPD Occasional Paper 40. Rural Non-farm Economy in Bangladesh: A View from Household Surveys. Presented at the Policy Dialogue on Promoting Rural Non-farm Economy: Is Bangladesh Doing Enough? (18 July 2002)

• CPD Occasional Paper 41: Nature and Impact of Women’s Participation in Economic Activities in Rural Bangladesh: Insights from Household Surveys presented at the dialogue on “Women’s Contribution to Rural Economic Activities: Making the Invisible Visible” on April 22, 2004,  Dhaka, Bangladesh: Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).

• Occasional Paper 42.  Changing Women’s Roles In Homestead Management: Mainstreaming Women in Rural Development (July 2004), presented at the dialogue on “Women’s Contribution to Rural Economic Activities: Making the Invisible Visible” on April 22, 2004, CPD Dhaka, Bangladesh: Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).

2003

Policy Briefs
(Series Editor: Dr Uttam Kumar Deb)

• Hossain, M , and Deb, U.K (2003). Liberalisation of the Crop Sector: Can Bangladesh Withstand Regional Competition? CPD-IRRI Policy Brief 4. Dhaka, Bangladesh: Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).

Dialogue Reports
(Series Editor: Professor Rehman Sobhan, Assistant Editor: Dr Uttam Kumar Deb):

• CPD Dialogue Report No. 63: Liberalization of Crop Sector: Can Bangladesh Withstand Regional Competition?  (October 2003)

Occasional Papers
(Series Editor: Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya; Assistant Editor: Ms Anisatul Fatema Yousuf):

• CPD Occasional paper 23: Trade Liberalization and the Crop Sector in Bangladesh.. Presented at the Policy Dialogue on Liberalization of Crop Sector: Can Bangladesh Withstand Regional Competition? (Jan 8, 2003)

• CPD Occasional Paper 37Hossain: Rice Biotechnology: Opportunity, Perceived Risk and Potential Benefits to Bangladesh. Presented at the Policy Dialogue on “Sustaining Agricultural Growth in Bangladesh? Should we go for Biotechnology for Rice Improvement?” (September 2003) .

Other publications

• Deb, U.K. (2003). Bhumi Bebahar O’ Fasal Binnase Paribartan (in Bangla). Paper presented at the Farmer-Researcher Workshop on Demand for Improved Rice Technologies in the Context of Transformation of Rural Economy in the 1990s”, held at Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI).

• Deb, U.K. and M. Hossain (2003). Liberalization of Rice Trade: Can Bangladesh Withstand Regional Competition? Paper presented at the South Asia Initiative Workshop on “Analysis of Trade Liberalization for Poverty Alleviation”, held at Colombo on April 21-25, 2003; jointly organised by the Council for Agricultural Research Policy (CARP), World Bank Institute (WBI), and International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).

• Hossain, M. and Deb, U.K (2003). Trade Liberalization and Rice Sector in Bangladesh. In: Next Step in Rice-Journal of the Bangladesh Rice Foundation, 29 Jan 2003, pp 69-86.
   

2002

Policy Briefs
(Series Editor: Dr Uttam Kumar Deb)

• Hossain, M, Janaiah, A., Husain, A.M.M. and Naher, Firdousi (2002). Rice Seed Delivery System and Seed Policy in Bangladesh. CPD-IRRI Policy Brief 1. Dhaka, Bangladesh: Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).

• Hossain, M. (2002). Rice Research and Poverty Alleviation in Bangladesh. CPD-IRRI Policy Brief 2. Dhaka, Bangladesh: Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).

• Hossain, M (2002). Promoting Rural Non-farm Economy of Bangladesh. CPD-IRRI Policy Brief 3. Dhaka, Bangladesh: Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD).
   

Dialogue Reports
(Series Editor: Professor Rehman Sobhan, Assistant Editor: Dr Uttam Kumar Deb):

• CPD Dialogue Report Number 52: Rice Seed Delivery and Seed Policy. (December, 2002)

As National Coordinator of the DoLSys subproject, Dr Uttam Kumar Deb, Research Fellow, CPD has assisted the DoLSys Team Leader Dr Mahabub Hossain in preparation of Project Completion Report and Technical Report, submitted to the PETRRA project management.
 

SANEI-IV (Trade Liberalization and Bangladesh Agriculture: Impacts on Cropping Pattern, Resource Use Efficiency and Effective Incentives)

Under the SANEI – IV Initiative, CPD is preparing a study on Trade Liberalisation and Bangladesh Agriculture: Impacts on Cropping Pattern, Resource Use Efficiency and Effective Incentives. The study is being prepared by a team at CPD under the leadership of Dr Uttam Kumar Deb, Research Fellow, CPD.