Here, on a series of silt islands called the chars, families farm without the benefit of running water or electricity and far from most amenities, like schools, clinics, and markets. Natural disasters, such as monsoons and floods, only add to the hardship by damaging homes and properties, contaminating water supplies, and keeping children from school. Even worse, gender discrimination and child marriage puts girls and women at a disadvantage, keeping them and their children trapped in poverty.
