Profitability of the farming systems and contribution of small-scale aquaculture in Bangladesh

This paper summarizes the results from monitoring 200 whole-farm systems in Bangladesh during 1998-1999. Sample farms were drawn from among those participating in an ICLARM - sponsored aquaculture demonstration effort representing five different agro-ecological regions. The objective was to better understand how aquaculture fit into the various farming systems and to establish baseline information against which the impact of introducing improved aquaculture technologies could be assessed. Income from farming activities has been portioned among land cropping, livestock, fish culture and agro-forestry. Off farm income has also been surveyed to give an overall view of the total household income. The study was conducted under the USAID - funded Research for Development of Sustainable Aquaculture Practices Project.