Charting A Course Toward Sustainable Marine Fisheries in Bangladesh

In the heart of Asia's largest and the world's most populated delta, Bangladesh's sprawling maritime domain spans over 118,000 square kilometers in the Bay of Bengal. Despite this vast marine territory, which can reach a depth of about 2,200 meters, the use of fisheries resources is currently confined to a shallow depth of approximately 80 meters. This is about one-third of the exclusive economic zone of Bangladesh.

Bangladesh’s maritime sector holds immense potential for the development of its coastal and marine fisheries resources. But the sector faces significant challenges, including overfishing, capture of juvenile stock, and illegal trawling. These factors contribute to further depletion of fish stock and the degradation of marine ecosystems.

The World Bank supported Sustainable Coastal and Marine Fisheries Project is helping to improve fisheries management, expand mariculture and strengthen aquaculture biosecurity and productivity in Bangladesh. The project has helped to increase vessel registration and licensing for fishing by five-fold, with the number of artisanal vessels with valid registration and licenses increasing to 8,247, as of September 2023. It’s also helping to set up community co-management associations with fishing communities, enabling them to adopt supplementary and alternative livelihoods.

Recently, Bangladesh has taken an important step to improve the sustainability of fishing resources in the coastal areas and sea. It established a monitoring system, a Joint Monitoring Cell (JMC), and the JMC Coordination Committee (JMCCC) that includes experts and infrastructure to ensure sustainable fisheries. JMC is a legal consortium of 13 public agencies. The JMC and JMCCC will be critical to reduce illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing. The JMC will provide real-time monitoring on the activities of fishing vessels, which will be used for conserving Bangladesh's aquatic biological stock and marine ecosystem and for reducing destructive fishing practices.

A Sea of Challenges

According to the Department of Fisheries (DoF), the fisheries industry contributed 2.08 percent to the overall GDP and 21.83 percent to the agricultural GDP in 2022.

As of 2023, the marine fishing fleet consists of 231 active industrial large trawlers and about 30,000 artisanal smaller vessels. They operate from over 200 landing sites along the coast. Despite the considerable size of the fishing fleet, only around 14,600 sq km (12 percent) of Bangladesh’s continental shelf area is commercially significant fishing grounds, which are overexploited. Artisanal vessels dominate the marine fish catch, with the set bag net being particularly destructive to hatchlings and juveniles.

The Fisheries Management Plans (for industrial fleet, artisanal vessels, and monitoring of the sea) indicate that current practices permit increasingly excessive fishing, and recommend curbing the growth of the artisanal fleet. Recent marine stock assessment reports (DoF, 2024) state that bottom trawlers and shrimp trawlers contribute to the overfishing of shrimp stocks. Research highlights troubling trends, including the inability of economically significant shrimp stocks to recover under the current fishery regime.

These detrimental and unsustainable fishing practices threaten the food security of the population and their livelihoods.

Joint Monitoring Cell: Guardian of the Seas

Realizing the potential of its waters, the Government of Bangladesh has been exploring ways to transform the fisheries sector. One giant step in this direction has been establishing a multi-surveillance powerhouse – the JMC.

The JMC is a unique administrative structure that unites several government agencies— DoF, Bangladesh Navy, Bangladesh Coast Guard, Mercantile Marine Office, River Police, Maritime Affairs Unit, Port Authorities, National Board of Revenue, and Divisional Commissioners of Chattogram, Khulna, and Barisal—to oversee monitoring, control, and surveillance within the exclusive economic zone of Bangladesh.

Of course, Bringing together all these agencies to form the JMC was no easy task.  In recounting his experience of setting up the JMC, the Director General of Department of Fisheries, Mr. Syed Md. Alamgir shared his experience.

“Reaching a consensus and setting up a participatory body like the JMC is a complicated and time-consuming process. However, without an inclusive approach, development processes are unsustainable. The JMC is no different. Its core function is to involve and cooperate with all the sea-related stakeholders in joint monitoring activities to eliminate illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing.”

Mr. Syed Md. Alamgir
Director General of Department of Fisheries

The active participation and effective collaboration of JMC members is essential for efficient management of the Bay of Bengal given the complex and multifaceted nature of maritime activities.

“We know that different agencies possess unique expertise, attributes, and jurisdictional authority. The JMC brings all these strengths to the same table. We hope agencies can now share resources, knowledge, skills, and institutional capacity to ensure sustainable management of the marine fisheries in Bangladesh.”

Mr. Zia Haider Chowdhury
Project Director, Bangladesh Sustainable Coastal and Marine Fisheries Project

The JMC’s collaborative approach and information-sharing mechanisms are set to facilitate timely responses to safety risks and emergencies. Through data collection, analysis, and biennial reviews, the JMC contributes to iterative management of the sea. The data collected also has the potential to feed into local and global studies that would foster a better understanding of fishing practices.

The JMC is equipped with advanced tracking technologies like Vessel Monitoring System, Automatic Identification System and Global System for Mobile to track the movement of fishing vessels, identify unauthorized or suspicious activities, and address violations. Furthermore, it will enforce compliance with national and international laws, simultaneously ensuring the safety of fishermen in precarious weather conditions and accidents, while promoting responsible marine practices.

The JMC, guided by the Marine Fisheries Act 2020 and supported by the World Bank’s Bangladesh Sustainable Coastal and Marine Fisheries project, is a steward of Bangladesh's marine resources.

Sailing Towards a Sustainable Future

As Bangladesh grapples with the complexities of marine resource management, the JMC stands out as a strategic response. Through pragmatic collaboration, technological integration, and a steadfast commitment to sustainability, the JMC has charted a course toward a future where marine resources are conserved, the environment is protected, and Bangladesh's maritime legacy is safeguarded for generations to come. Through the World Bank supported Sustainable Coastal and Marine Fisheries Project, Bangladesh is heading towards improved fisheries management, expanded mariculture and strengthened aquaculture biosecurity and productivity.