Study Area: The area for the study was Phulpur upazila (sub-district) under Mymensingh district and two important prawn markets in Mymensingh town. Phulpur was selected for this study. It is an important area for freshwater prawn farming due to the availability of hatchery-produced post-larvae, favorable resources and climatic conditions, such as the availability of pond and low lying agricultural land, warm climate, fertile soil, and cheap and abundant labor. For the market survey, two important prawn markets in Mymensingh town, namely Machua Bazaar (i.e., fish market) and Nutun Bazaar (new market) were selected based on market history, supply of prawns, number of traders, and the time and duration of the trading season. Data Collection Methods: Primary data were gathered by field survey. This survey involved the inspection of the study area in terms of prawn distribution and marketing systems. A combination of participatory, qualitative and quantitative methods was used for data collection. Data were collected for 6 months from August 2003 to January 2004, during the peak season of prawn marketing. The following data collection methods were used for this study: 1. Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA): PRA is a group of methods used to collect information in a participatory fashion from rural communities. The advantage of PRA over other methods is that it allows wider participation of the community, therefore the information collected is likely to be more accurate. For this study the PRA tool Focus Group Discussion (FGD) was conducted with prawn farmers. FGD was used to get an overview of particular issues such as existing prawn harvesting and marketing systems, pricing mechanisms, and constraints of prawn marketing. Five FGD sessions were conducted in Phulpur upazila where each group had 6 to 12 farmers (total 48 farmers) and duration was approximately an hour. FGD sessions were held in front of village shops, under large trees, in farmers’ houses and on school premises, wherever there were spontaneous gatherings and where participants could sit, feel comfortable and were easily observed. 2. Questionnaire interviews: The pre-survey activities included reconnaissance for the pilot survey and revision of survey instruments, preparation of sampling frame and sampling of respondents. For the preparation of the questionnaire, market visits and primary interviews with five prawn traders were conducted. Attention was paid to incorporate any new information that had not been designed to be asked and filled in on the draft schedule. The draft schedule was modified and improved based on experience gained from the pilot survey. For questionnaire interviews, prawn traders were selected through simple random sampling. A total of 20 prawn traders (10 in each market) were interviewed in the two markets. The interviews, lasting about an hour, focused on prawn distribution and marketing
systems, calculation of costs and margins, assessment of the pricing mechanisms, identifications of bottlenecks and opportunities, and socioeconomic conditions of traders. Interviews were also conducted with 5 managers of processing plants in the Khulna area of southwest Bangladesh. A simple questionnaire was used for interviews, covering prawn processing, export, price, etc. Interviews were conducted at a time convenient to the managers. After interviews, prawn processing was observed and a visit was made to Mongla port, where prawns were loaded to ships for exporting to the international market. 3. Cross-check interviews with key informants: A key informant is someone with special knowledge on a particular topic. Key informants are expected to be able to answer questions about the knowledge and behavior of others, and about the operations of the
broader systems. For this study, cross-check interviews were conducted with school teachers, local leaders, Upazila and District Fisheries Officers, and staff from ATDP, MAEP and the World Fish Center in their offices and=or houses. Where information was contradictory, further assessment was carried out. Data Processing and Analysis: Data from FGD and questionnaire interviews were coded and entered into a database system using Microsoft Excel software. The statistical program SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Science) was used to analyze the data, producing descriptive statistics and identifying the importance of the different factors in prawn marketing systems.