Economic Vulnerability of Women: A Study of Nalian and Kalabogi Villages in Sutarkhali Union, Dacope, Khulna, Bangladesh

Abstract

Bangladesh’s southwestern coastal region is highly vulnerable to climate change, facing frequent cyclones, floods, and salinity intrusion. This study investigates two villages in Dacope Upazila of Khulna District, characterised by agrarian, fishing, and resource extraction-related unsustainable economic activities. Compounded by constrained market integration, diminished adaptive capacities, and deficient infrastructural development, these vulnerabilities disproportionately affect female populations in Nalian and Kalabogi, where gender influenced socioeconomic disparities are closely associated with heightened disaster-related economic precarity. The study introduces the Economic Vulnerability of Women Index (EVWI), a composite metric operationalising five empirically grounded dimensions of vulnerability: Disaster Preparedness, Education, Income, Financial Accessibility, and Demography – each scored using a Likert Scale from 1 to 5 on a severity scale. Employing a mixed-methods approach, primary data were collected through semi-structured household surveys (n=52) and two participatory focus group discussions to illustrate individual and community economic vulnerability. The EVWI demonstrated acceptable internal consistency with a Cronbach’s Alpha of 0.61. The analysis yielded mean EVWI scores of 3.41 for Kalabogi and 3.06 for Nalian, indicating a ‘Moderate to High’ level of vulnerability in both villages. The 11.5% higher vulnerability in Kalabogi is primarily driven by lower secondary income sources and substandard infrastructure. Findings also highlight critical financial exclusion – with 78.85% lacking formal bank accounts – which prolongs recovery phases. These results demonstrate the EVWI’s capacity to delineate fine-grained vulnerability patterns, advocating for the institutionalization of gendered socioeconomic metrics within disaster risk reduction plans to enhance economic resilience in the Global South’s marginalized coastal geographies.