BALIKA fact sheet: Highlight on livelihoods

There are few income-earning opportunities for adolescent girls in the Bangladeshi Association for Life Skills, Income, and Knowledge for Adolescents (BALIKA) study area, and livelihoods opportunities vary considerably by economic status and education. The ability to acquire livelihood-relevant skills, networks, and work experience during adolescence can be an important predictor of productive capacity later in life. However, across the study districts, the proportion of adolescent girls who are working is low. Most girls work as tutors or are engaged in the agricultural and poultry sector. Better-educated girls are more likely to be engaged in paid work. This BALIKA “Highlight on Livelihoods” fact sheet concludes: Child labor was not high and number of hours worked was low in the southern part of Bangladesh. Married adolescents were engaged and earned more than unmarried girls. Education level is associated with adolescents’ engagement in the workforce. Girls with higher education worked less, but their hourly rate was higher as they were more likely engaged in tutoring. Opportunities to continue education and engage in income-generating activities should be offered to girls, which can be a strategy to delay early marriage in Bangladesh