**4. Importance of coastal Bangladesh**

### **4.1 The coast of Bangladesh**

Bangladesh coast consists of 19 districts which cover 32% of the total area of the country [1]. The population in the coastal area is expected to increase from 36.8 million in 2001 to 60.8 million by 2050 [2]. This coastal belt has miscellaneous natural resources counting the largest mangrove forest in the world (Sundarbans), salt, coastal fisheries, and other minerals. Additionally, this part of the country has a high exploration prospective for both onshore and offshore natural gas [3]. The resourceful ecosystems of this coastal area maintain the livelihoods of the local communities. Moreover, this region has the potential for tourism, ports, and other developments [4]. But this region is highly exposed to various climatic factors, such as temperature fluctuation, erratic behavior of rainfall, increased frequency of cyclones, drought, and saltwater intrusion [5].

### **4.2 Agriculture in the coastal area of Bangladesh**

Agriculture is the major sector in the economy of Bangladesh, and over 30% of the net cultivable land is in the coastal area [6]. In the past, people were interested to cultivate not only local varieties that are saline tolerant but also other varieties with greater plant height and comparatively low production cost and are tasty and above all easily manageable. The local rice varieties are categorized into two types, one for planting in the freshwater shrimp farms and another for other agricultural lands. *Jotabalam* and *ghunshi* varieties are selected to be cultivated in the shrimp farms. On the other hand, *ashfall* and *benapol* varieties are designed for planting in other agricultural lands.
