After the Cyclone Sidr which affected massively the South of Bangladesh, IBC - International Blue Crescent, with the fnancial help of AJDC - American Joint Distribution Committee has supported a number of 725 families in Borobogi Union / Barguna District / Barisal Division with food and non food items.

Presently, with the support of the same donor, IBC is implementing a fishermen support project for the most vulnerable families in the same area, by constructing and providing fishing boats to restore the affected households. Alongside, a hygiene promotion activity will start being implemented by our local partners, targeting all age / gender groups at villages' level.

The fishing boats of the project started to be built in an open air "workshop" on the shore of the Nilganj (in transl. Blue Place) / Undhermanik (transl. Dark jewel) river. The carpenters are from the village and they are building our wooden fishing boats of 25 ft length x 6 ft wide. The work is supervised by a master carpenter and by the direct beneficiaries themselves, making sure - in this way - that the boats will be built by the craftsmen at the best quality. The boats are made of good quality chambal wood and rain tree, water resistant and possible to use up to 2 years without any need of repairs.

The villages targeted in this project are ones of the most isolated in the area, due to the fact that the access is mostly accessible by boats, the narrow path on the shore being in very limited use. The families to be supported used to make up to 500 Taka / day (7 to 8 Dollars) before the Cyclone, while presently the gain ranges only between 50 to 70 Taka (50 cents to 1 Dollar or 1.5 Dollars) a day.

One of the beneficiary families is the family of Masum, a man in his thirties with 3 children and his wife, Rahima, who has barely recuperated from a very bad accident that kept her for months in the hospital. She was travelling in those overcrowded river boats to reach the nearest town, when another passing boat, loaded with timber, lost control and hit the boat with people. She had major cranium fractures and a great part of her scalp was lost. Now she is back at home, with transplants from her leg skin on her head and knowing that her hair will never grow back again. The family survives with the small amount of fish they catch by the recycled nets in the river, eating it or selling it and with the 15 kg rice bag received on monthly basis from the Government. Their shelter is made from the recycled materials of the former shelter, like a tent-hut with CGI and plastic sheets bended together rudimentary. The cooking area is just in front of the hut's entrance, on a whole dug in the ground and the washing area is immediately next to it, made of few timber pieces on the ground, 4 bamboo sticks around and fenced by a thin tarpaulin. The toilet is used commonly with the neighbours. is immediately next to it, made of few timber pieces on the ground, 4 bamboo sticks around and fenced by a thin tarpaulin. The toilet is used commonly with the neighbours. is immediately next to it, made of few timber pieces on the ground, 4 bamboo sticks around and fenced by a thin tarpaulin. The toilet is used commonly with the neighbours. is immediately next to it, made of few timber pieces on the ground, 4 bamboo sticks around and fenced by a thin tarpaulin. The toilet is used commonly with the neighbours.

Another beneficiary family is that of Joynal who used to live with his immediate family on the shore of the river, being a fisherman. His household (house made of CGI sheets, some chicken that his wife was taking care of and other few belongings) was washed away during the Cyclone and the only things he could recuperate were some pieces of timber from his shelter and his boat, some CGI sheets and pieces of his fishing nets that he uses now to catch fish on the shore of the river. Because the piece of land he had his shelter on before the Cyclone is caved by the waters and stiffed with mud, he put his hut on the small plot of land owned by his old father for cultivation of paddy. Joynal lives with his wife, his 7 children and his old father. The crops have been destroyed by the salty waters brought in by the Cyclone from the sea. They survive presently from the fish they catch in the river just by entering the water with a net in their hands and from the monthly ratio of rice.