Farmers in Bangladesh face considerable risk due to fluctuations in biophysical and economic conditions, but the response to these risks is poorly understood. In particular, there is a need to better understand the endogenous management of risk in the rice/shrimp farming systems that have emerged in the inner coastal zone of Bangladesh. This paper draws on a case study of a typical rice/shrimp farming village in Khulna District to explore: (a) farmers’ perceptions of risks and their management responses, (b) risk-return trade-offs within small-, medium-, and large-farm households, and (c) the role of other farm and non-farm activities in mitigating risks to household livelihoods. Farm-level data were collected through a reconnaissance survey, a village census, household case studies, and a sample survey of 73 households. Representative farm budgets were constructed for the three farm-size classes. The key performance indicators calculated were gross margin (GM), net income (NI), and GM per workday of family labour. The riskiness of the rice/shrimp system was assessed for each farm type using farmers’ estimates of low, normal, and high yields and prices to specify triangular distributions. Cumulative distribution functions (CDFs) for GM, NI, and GM per workday were generated. A whole-farm economic analysis was also conducted to assess the relative contributions of different sources of income for each farm type. With access to saline water for shrimp farming in the dry season and fresh water for rice in the wet season, farmers have developed and progressively adapted an alternating rice/shrimp farming system that has minimised the trade-offs between the two crops and provides a good return to household and village resources for all farm types. The system is subject to significant production and market risks, especially the shrimp component. However, farmers have clearly perceived these risks and ameliorated them through a range of production, marketing, and management strategies. With these risk management practices, the rice/shrimp cropping system is economically viable, given the current variation in yields and prices. The greater risk associated with the shrimp component was offset by the renewed stability of the rice component over the past decade, and the risks of the whole cropping system were offset by other farm and non-farm sources of livelihood. Development interventions need to work with farmers to provide further options (suitable rice varieties, solutions to shrimp disease, improved village and transport infrastructure) if this resilience is to be maintained.

由于生物物理和经济状况的波动，孟加拉国的农民面临着巨大的风险，但是人们对这些风险的反应知之甚少。特别是，有必要更好地了解孟加拉国内陆沿海地区出现的稻米/虾养殖系统中的风险内生管理。本文以Khulna区一个典型的水稻/虾养殖村为例，研究了：（a）农民对风险的认识及其管理对策，（b）中小， （c）其他农场和非农业活动在减轻家庭生计风险方面的作用。通过调查调查，村庄普查，家庭案例研究以及对73户家庭的抽样调查收集了农场一级的数据。为三个农场规模的班级制定了代表性的农场预算。计算出的关键绩效指标是毛利率（GM），净收入（NI）和家庭劳动的每个工作日的GM。使用农民对低，正常和高单产和价格的估计来评估每种农场类型的大米/虾系统的风险，以指定三角分布。生成每个工作日GM，NI和GM的累积分布函数（CDF）。还进行了全农场经济分析，以评估每种农场类型不同收入来源的相对贡献。在干旱季节获得用于虾类养殖的盐水，在潮湿季节获得用于稻米的淡水，农民已经开发并逐步采用了水稻/虾类交替耕作制度，该制度最大程度地减少了两种作物之间的权衡，并为所有农场类型的家庭和乡村资源提供了良好的回报。该系统有很大的生产和市场风险，尤其是虾类成分。但是，农民已经清楚地意识到了这些风险，并通过一系列生产，营销和管理策略来减轻了这些风险。通过这些风险管理实践，考虑到当前产量和价格的变化，大米/虾类种植系统在经济上是可行的。在过去十年中，大米部分重新恢复稳定，抵消了与虾类部分有关的更大风险，而其他农业和非农业生计来源也抵消了整个农作系统的风险。