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The Role of Fatalism in Resilience to Food Price Volatility in Bangladesh

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  • Ferdous Jahan
  • Mamun‐ur‐Rashid
  • Sharif A. Wahab

Abstract

Millions of people in Bangladesh suffer from hunger, unpredictable and unstable livelihoods, precarious living conditions and social injustice. Yet they survive and become resilient. However, the resilience achieved by the poor is minimal and incremental in nature and does not result in their wellbeing. Based on three years of qualitative research, this article attempts to understand the nature of and pathways to ‘resilience of the poor people'. The article argues that poor people's approach to ‘resilience’ is twofold. First, they perceive their poverty and associated problems as ‘Allah's will', with not much to be done about it. At the same time, they engage in continuous innovative practices to survive. These two worldviews together ('fatalism’ and ‘self‐help') make the poor ‘resilient'. This also ‘partially’ explains the absence of strong activism, collective action and protests within a context of state failure (in terms of ensuring rights and entitlements to its citizens).

Suggested Citation

  • Ferdous Jahan & Mamun‐ur‐Rashid & Sharif A. Wahab, 2015. "The Role of Fatalism in Resilience to Food Price Volatility in Bangladesh," IDS Bulletin, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 46(6), pages 60-67, November.
  • Handle: RePEc:wly:idsxxx:v:46:y:2015:i:6:p:60-67
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1111/1759-5436.12187
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    Cited by:

    1. Christophe Béné & Timothy Frankenberger & Tiffany Griffin & Mark Langworthy & Monica Mueller & Stephanie Martin, 2019. "‘Perception matters’: New insights into the subjective dimension of resilience in the context of humanitarian and food security crises," Progress in Development Studies, , vol. 19(3), pages 186-210, July.
    2. Christophe Béné, 2020. "Resilience of local food systems and links to food security – A review of some important concepts in the context of COVID-19 and other shocks," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 12(4), pages 805-822, August.

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