Effects of Flood on Agricultural Productivity in Bangladesh

This article examines the impact of floods on agriculture in Bangladesh and argues that, although severe inundation destroys crops in the monsoon flood months, monsoon floods act as an open-access resource in supplying irrigational input to agriculture. District-level rice and jute productivity data for the period 1978-2000 are analyzed to investigate the long-term impacts of floods in terms of agricultural performance, comparing “more” flood-prone districts with “less” flood-prone districts. In addition, the short-term impacts of floods are analyzed on crops grown in the flood months and in subsequent, post-flood months. The results show that the area under cultivation and agricultural productivity are higher in the “more” flood-prone districts of Bangladesh. They also show that, while yield rates decline when floods assume “extreme” proportions, productivity increases during “normal” floods and in the post-flood months.