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School Dropouts and Child Labor Surge Among Coastal Children Due to Climate Change: Education Stalls Amid Disasters
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By Rita Bhowmick (Dhaka Bureau)
At an age when he should be holding books and going to school, Durjoy Sana spends his days catching crabs and fish in the rivers of the Sundarbans. On a day with a high tide, he earns 500 to 600 Baka, while on low tide days, he sometimes returns home empty-handed. This child from Mathura Pur Jelepara in Shyamnagar, Satkhira, dropped out of school in the third grade. Now, like his father and grandfather, the Sundarbans has become his workplace.
The story of Durjoy’s older brother, Joy Sana, is even more tragic. He had to drop out of school while studying in the eighth grade at Bonshree Shiksha Niketan. According to his family, he suffered a mental breakdown due to physical punishment and humiliation by teachers for failing to keep up with his lessons. At one point, Joy even attempted suicide. Now, both brothers are engaged in fishing alongside their family.
The story of Durjoy and Joy is no isolated incident. Driven by the impacts of climate change- such as frequent cyclones, tidal surges, and floods- families in remote areas of Shyamnagar, Munshiganj, and Assasuni near the Sundarbans are repeatedly devastated. Losing their homes and livelihoods, many families are plunging deeper into poverty. That pressure is directly impacting the education of their children.
Shoneka Sana, the mother of Durjoy and Joy from Mathura Pur Jelepara, shared that disasters like Aila, Amphan, Bulbul, and Remal destroyed their homes, spreading saline water all around. With her husband’s fishing disrupted, severe economic crisis descended upon the family. Despite trying to send her children to school, poverty and the humiliating experiences at school ultimately forced her to stop their education.
Md. Abdul Karim, headmaster of Joy’s school, Bonshree Shiksha Niketan in Horinagor, echoed a similar picture. According to him, natural disasters are more frequent here due to climate change. River erosion washes away the homes and income sources of low-income people. Some children go fishing in the Sundarbans with their parents. After being cut off from school for a few months, children no longer want to return easily. He added, ‘When teachers pressure them to study, they refuse to come to school. When their families pressure them to go, they say, ‘They beat me, hurt my feelings, and humiliate me. If you pressure me too much, I will commit suicide.’ In this situation, parents also grow lenient toward their children.’
Compelled, parents say, ‘Let it be, he doesn’t need education,’ blaming everything on fate. This is also a reason for student dropouts.
The Burden of Marriage Looming Over Girls
As household incomes decline due to climate change, various risks for girls are also mounting. Driven by security concerns and poverty, many families are marrying off their daughters at an early age. Tonushree Mondal, a tenth-grade student at Munshiganj Sundarban Girls’ High School, shared that several of her classmates were married between the seventh and tenth grades. Following marriage, they dropped out of school and lost contact.
According to S.M. Yasminur Rahman, Headmaster of Gabura GLM High School (Gabura Gopalmukhi Memorial High School), climate change pushes families deeper into poverty, which remains the primary driver of student dropouts. Boys go to brick kilns or the Sundarbans at a young age, while girls are given away in marriage.
Merely bringing children back to school is not enough. Md. Alomgir Kabir, Satkhira District Education Officer, stated that lifestyles in disaster-prone areas differ from other regions. Due to poverty, children join their parents in various professions, causing irregular school attendance, alongside a prevailing trend of child marriage. To curb dropouts, if a student is absent for three consecutive days, prompt communication with parents and initiatives to pull them out of child labor and bring them back to school are necessary.
However, the reality is that mere school reintegration initiatives will not solve the problem. Unless economically vulnerable families whose child’s labor forms part of household income are financially secured, keeping children in school remains difficult. Likewise, in areas where schools repeatedly transform into storm shelters, ensuring educational continuity without alternative arrangements is equally challenging. Furthermore, children’s mental health remains entirely outside the purview of teachers and education authorities.
Evidence of Climate Shocks in Research
In a 2023 survey of 300 children aged 13 to 18 across eight disaster-prone districts under ActionAid Bangladesh’s ‘Fund Our Future’ campaign, over 40% reported that their education was disrupted by one or more climate-induced problems. They cited prolonged school closures, post-flood road damages, and severed communication due to tidal waters.
UNICEF’s 2026 report, ‘Rising to the Challenge: Youth Perspectives on Climate Change and Education in Bangladesh,’ surveyed 5,586 students aged 15 to 24. The report stated that 78% of students in this age group experience negative impacts on their education due to climate change, with 23% reporting inability to attend educational institutions regularly and 18% highlighting their family’s inability to sustain their education.
On-site inspections of primary and secondary schools across three unions in Shyamnagar and Assasuni upazilas of Satkhira reveal shifts in student enrollment. Across seven government primary schools in Gabura, total students fell from 1,622 in 2024 to 1,548 in 2025. In three Munshiganj schools, enrollment dropped from 642 to 619, while across all three unions combined, primary student numbers declined from 2,675 to 2,593.
In Gabura union’s 7 government primary schools, students comprised 49.38% boys and 50.62% girls in 2024, shifting to 48.39% boys and 51.61% girls in 2025. Their share of total primary students stood at 60.64% in 2024 and 59.70% in 2025, with dropout rates on the rise.
In Munshiganj union’s 3 primary schools, students were 49.38% boys and 50.62% girls in 2024, shifting to 51.05% boys and 48.95% girls in 2025. Their share of total primary students was 24.00% in 2024 and 23.87% in 2025, with increasing dropout rates.
In Assasuni’s Pratapnagar union’s 2 primary schools, students were 44.77% boys and 55.23% girls in 2024, shifting to 45.54% boys and 54.46% girls in 2025. Their share of total primary students stood at 15.36% in 2024 and 16.43% in 2025, showing a decline in dropout rates.
Across all three unions combined, students were 48.67% boys and 51.33% girls in 2024; in 2025, they were 48.55% boys and 51.45% girls.
In Gabura union’s 3 secondary schools, total students comprised 41.16% boys and 58.84% girls in 2024, shifting to 43.12% boys and 56.88% girls in 2025. Their share of total secondary students was 47.52% in 2024 and 50.20% in 2025. Boys’ dropout rates decreased, while girls’ dropout rates increased.
Coordinated Initiatives to Save the Coastal Future from Climate Change
The crisis of school dropouts among coastal children driven by climate impacts is not merely an educational issue; it is intertwined with child labor, child marriage, security, and mental health concerns.
Rasheda K. Choudhury, Executive Director of Campaign for Popular Education (CAMPE), said, ‘The impact of climate change is hitting livelihoods as well as education. Students are plunging into a form of trauma induced by disasters, addiction, and insecurity.’
Dr. Nazneen Ahmed, Executive Director of CPD, believes that alongside parental awareness, incentives are required to keep children from ultra-poor families in school. Psychotherapist Monira Rahman also emphasized accessible grassroots mental health support. Children dropping out due to climate-induced disasters, poverty, family pressure, and insecurity prematurely enter adult-like responsibilities, triggering frustration, anger, distress, and even suicidal tendencies.
New Government Initiatives
State Minister for Primary and Mass Education Bobby Hajjaj stated that Satkhira faces a dual challenge of climate change and remote terrain, and special measures for students and teachers are currently under planning. He also mentioned plans for mid-day meals, uniforms, educational materials, and skills-based training for dropped-out students.
However, the stories of Durjoy and Joy near the Sundarbans and Rozina from Pratapnagar tell us that merely handing over books is not enough. Climate-impacted families must be sustained. Child labor must be effectively eradicated; child marriage prevented; and disaster-resilient schools and safe communication ensured. Because when a coastal child trades books and notebooks for a crab-gathering basket, carries the burden of a brick kiln, or sits adorned for marriage, it is not just one child’s education that stalls- the entire coastal future is put at risk.
Rita Bhowmick:
Rita Bhowmick is a prominent Bangladeshi journalist, researcher, and writer with nearly three decades of experience, widely recognized for environmental journalism. Holding honors and master’s degrees in Geography from the University of Dhaka, her analytical perspective spans environmental and social issues. Since 1997, she has worked for leading national dailies such as Jugantor, Samakal, and Ittefaq. Currently, she serves as a correspondent for Pressenza- Dhaka Bureau and a senior reporter for Banglaaffairs.com, where her work centers on the intersection of environment, climate, and their correlation with women, children, and social welfare.
Her reports focus deeply on environmental themes- particularly women and children, food security, rural livelihoods, and climate change vulnerabilities. She has earned various fellowships for research, including with SNV (2018), Earth Journalism Network (2026), OKUP (2026), and a 2024 study on rural indigenous women’s agricultural contributions and wage disparities. She completed the Thomson Foundation’s ‘Women in Journalism’ program and has received the UNFPA Media Award, Meena Media Award, WFP Media Award, and multiple Bazlur Rahman Memorial Medals. Author of over thirty books, Rita Bhowmik is an active member of the National Press Club and Bangla Academy, contributing significantly to impactful and solution-oriented environmental journalism.
Rozina, a second-grade student at No. 153 Pratapnagar Paschimpara Government Primary School, with her mother, Rebecca. She works at a brick kiln. Photo: Rita Bhowmick
From Disaster to Poverty, From Poverty to Child Labor The impact of climate change behind the school dropouts of coastal children is direct and multifaceted. Disasters destroy livelihoods and impoverish families; subsequently, children are drawn into contributing to household income. Some go to the Sundarbans to catch crabs, while others work in brick kilns. Many girls are married off at an early age. Mobile phone and drug addictions are also compounding the crisis. Alongside climate change, parental unawareness and poor communication systems are driving student dropouts. Rozina, a second-grade student at Government Primary School No. 153 in Paschimpara, Assasuni, has to accompany her family to brick kilns. Due to poverty, her mother, Rebeka, travels to brick kilns in Barisal every year in the month of Kartik (autumn). With no one to look after the children, she is forced to take her two daughters along. For the entire duration of their stay at the brick kilns, their education remains suspended. Upon returning after a few months, they lag behind regular students and eventually develop a reluctance to return to school at all. Tanzim-ul-Islam, a student of Munshiganj’s Jelekhali Tripuraani Bidyapith, shared that many of his classmates who started with him in the first grade are no longer in school. Some are working with their parents at brick kilns or in the Sundarbans, while others have become addicted to mobile phones or drugs. He noted that socializing with local delinquents is also changing students’ behavior. Government Primary School No. 53 in Charknimukha, Gabura, is running with only three teachers. Acting Headmaster Rashida Khatun said, ‘Poor students take their books in January, and in February they go off to work at brick kilns with their parents. When the parents return to the village after six months, they come back to school. Regular students forge ahead in their studies, while these children fall behind.’ Headmaster Ahsan Ullah of Government Primary School No. 54, Paschimamari, shared similar views. According to him, the primary preconditions for student dropouts are geographical location and poverty. Men in this disaster-prone area stay away for six months, taking their wives along for cooking chores and their children with them. Climate change has severely degraded communication and safe drinking water systems. The school water is so saline that it cannot even be touched with hands, let alone drunk. Compounding this is a severe teacher shortage- just 4 teachers for 255 students, while a neighboring school has 2 teachers for 200 students. As a result, we cannot deliver 100% education to our students. All parents are working-class people, and as soon as primary education ends, they put their children to work.Students of No. 68 Khalisabunia Government Primary School are returning home after crossing a dilapidated wooden bridge. Photo: Rita Bhowmick.
Schooling: Sometimes a House of Learning, Sometimes a Shelter Another major blow of climate change falls on the normal functioning of schools. During cyclones, tidal surges, and floods, many coastal schools are utilized as cyclone shelters, while some schools are damaged or destroyed by disasters, halting classes for extended periods. Consequently, many students refuse to return to school once the disasters pass. Students from Gabura and Munshiganj in Shyamnagar, as well as Pratapnagar in Assasuni, shared similar accounts. Badsha Islam, a student of Gabura GLM High School, said, ‘Many students from grades six to ten are dropping out of studies due to frequent disasters. During disasters, schools are used as shelters and remain closed for several days. Amid household financial hardships during this time, boys go to brick kilns and some of the girls get married off.’ Md. Jalal Uddin, acting headmaster of Gabura Gainbari Government Primary School No. 55, stated that schools turn into shelters during various natural disasters, disrupting students’ studies. According to him, natural disasters also shrink people’s incomes, making it impossible to support families on such limited earnings. Fathers are forced to involve their school-going children in various professions, thinking that their family needs one or two boys to earn. Once a boy starts earning, money comes into his hands, leading him to buy a smartphone. He begins associating with older boys or peers who have gone astray and slips further off track through smartphones, with some even falling into drug addiction. When elders try to talk to them, they take it the wrong way. Parents often side with their boys instead of counseling or disciplining them. He noted, ‘Alongside social disasters, this is also damaging the mental health of children.’
The Burden of Marriage Looming Over Girls
As household incomes decline due to climate change, various risks for girls are also mounting. Driven by security concerns and poverty, many families are marrying off their daughters at an early age. Tonushree Mondal, a tenth-grade student at Munshiganj Sundarban Girls’ High School, shared that several of her classmates were married between the seventh and tenth grades. Following marriage, they dropped out of school and lost contact.
According to S.M. Yasminur Rahman, Headmaster of Gabura GLM High School (Gabura Gopalmukhi Memorial High School), climate change pushes families deeper into poverty, which remains the primary driver of student dropouts. Boys go to brick kilns or the Sundarbans at a young age, while girls are given away in marriage.
Merely bringing children back to school is not enough. Md. Alomgir Kabir, Satkhira District Education Officer, stated that lifestyles in disaster-prone areas differ from other regions. Due to poverty, children join their parents in various professions, causing irregular school attendance, alongside a prevailing trend of child marriage. To curb dropouts, if a student is absent for three consecutive days, prompt communication with parents and initiatives to pull them out of child labor and bring them back to school are necessary.
However, the reality is that mere school reintegration initiatives will not solve the problem. Unless economically vulnerable families whose child’s labor forms part of household income are financially secured, keeping children in school remains difficult. Likewise, in areas where schools repeatedly transform into storm shelters, ensuring educational continuity without alternative arrangements is equally challenging. Furthermore, children’s mental health remains entirely outside the purview of teachers and education authorities.
Evidence of Climate Shocks in Research
In a 2023 survey of 300 children aged 13 to 18 across eight disaster-prone districts under ActionAid Bangladesh’s ‘Fund Our Future’ campaign, over 40% reported that their education was disrupted by one or more climate-induced problems. They cited prolonged school closures, post-flood road damages, and severed communication due to tidal waters.
UNICEF’s 2026 report, ‘Rising to the Challenge: Youth Perspectives on Climate Change and Education in Bangladesh,’ surveyed 5,586 students aged 15 to 24. The report stated that 78% of students in this age group experience negative impacts on their education due to climate change, with 23% reporting inability to attend educational institutions regularly and 18% highlighting their family’s inability to sustain their education.
On-site inspections of primary and secondary schools across three unions in Shyamnagar and Assasuni upazilas of Satkhira reveal shifts in student enrollment. Across seven government primary schools in Gabura, total students fell from 1,622 in 2024 to 1,548 in 2025. In three Munshiganj schools, enrollment dropped from 642 to 619, while across all three unions combined, primary student numbers declined from 2,675 to 2,593.
In Gabura union’s 7 government primary schools, students comprised 49.38% boys and 50.62% girls in 2024, shifting to 48.39% boys and 51.61% girls in 2025. Their share of total primary students stood at 60.64% in 2024 and 59.70% in 2025, with dropout rates on the rise.
In Munshiganj union’s 3 primary schools, students were 49.38% boys and 50.62% girls in 2024, shifting to 51.05% boys and 48.95% girls in 2025. Their share of total primary students was 24.00% in 2024 and 23.87% in 2025, with increasing dropout rates.
In Assasuni’s Pratapnagar union’s 2 primary schools, students were 44.77% boys and 55.23% girls in 2024, shifting to 45.54% boys and 54.46% girls in 2025. Their share of total primary students stood at 15.36% in 2024 and 16.43% in 2025, showing a decline in dropout rates.
Across all three unions combined, students were 48.67% boys and 51.33% girls in 2024; in 2025, they were 48.55% boys and 51.45% girls.
In Gabura union’s 3 secondary schools, total students comprised 41.16% boys and 58.84% girls in 2024, shifting to 43.12% boys and 56.88% girls in 2025. Their share of total secondary students was 47.52% in 2024 and 50.20% in 2025. Boys’ dropout rates decreased, while girls’ dropout rates increased.
Coordinated Initiatives to Save the Coastal Future from Climate Change
The crisis of school dropouts among coastal children driven by climate impacts is not merely an educational issue; it is intertwined with child labor, child marriage, security, and mental health concerns.
Rasheda K. Choudhury, Executive Director of Campaign for Popular Education (CAMPE), said, ‘The impact of climate change is hitting livelihoods as well as education. Students are plunging into a form of trauma induced by disasters, addiction, and insecurity.’
Dr. Nazneen Ahmed, Executive Director of CPD, believes that alongside parental awareness, incentives are required to keep children from ultra-poor families in school. Psychotherapist Monira Rahman also emphasized accessible grassroots mental health support. Children dropping out due to climate-induced disasters, poverty, family pressure, and insecurity prematurely enter adult-like responsibilities, triggering frustration, anger, distress, and even suicidal tendencies.
New Government Initiatives
State Minister for Primary and Mass Education Bobby Hajjaj stated that Satkhira faces a dual challenge of climate change and remote terrain, and special measures for students and teachers are currently under planning. He also mentioned plans for mid-day meals, uniforms, educational materials, and skills-based training for dropped-out students.
However, the stories of Durjoy and Joy near the Sundarbans and Rozina from Pratapnagar tell us that merely handing over books is not enough. Climate-impacted families must be sustained. Child labor must be effectively eradicated; child marriage prevented; and disaster-resilient schools and safe communication ensured. Because when a coastal child trades books and notebooks for a crab-gathering basket, carries the burden of a brick kiln, or sits adorned for marriage, it is not just one child’s education that stalls- the entire coastal future is put at risk.
Rita Bhowmick:
Rita Bhowmick is a prominent Bangladeshi journalist, researcher, and writer with nearly three decades of experience, widely recognized for environmental journalism. Holding honors and master’s degrees in Geography from the University of Dhaka, her analytical perspective spans environmental and social issues. Since 1997, she has worked for leading national dailies such as Jugantor, Samakal, and Ittefaq. Currently, she serves as a correspondent for Pressenza- Dhaka Bureau and a senior reporter for Banglaaffairs.com, where her work centers on the intersection of environment, climate, and their correlation with women, children, and social welfare.
Her reports focus deeply on environmental themes- particularly women and children, food security, rural livelihoods, and climate change vulnerabilities. She has earned various fellowships for research, including with SNV (2018), Earth Journalism Network (2026), OKUP (2026), and a 2024 study on rural indigenous women’s agricultural contributions and wage disparities. She completed the Thomson Foundation’s ‘Women in Journalism’ program and has received the UNFPA Media Award, Meena Media Award, WFP Media Award, and multiple Bazlur Rahman Memorial Medals. Author of over thirty books, Rita Bhowmik is an active member of the National Press Club and Bangla Academy, contributing significantly to impactful and solution-oriented environmental journalism.
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Source: Pressenza