The 2026 Haor flood severely affected northeastern Bangladesh, submerging more than 46,730 hectares of standing boro paddy and impacting over 236,000 farming households. While the disaster received wide national media coverage, this study found that women farmers and their agricultural contributions were largely invisible in news reporting.

The research analyzed 77 news reports published between April 29 and May 9, 2026, across five major national media outlets: The Daily Star, Dhaka Tribune, Prothom Alo, Bangladesh Pratidin, and Jago News 24. The findings reveal a clear gender imbalance. Only 14% of reports mentioned women in agriculture-related roles, and only 2 reports explicitly identified women as farmers. Among 125 direct quotations, 94% came from men, while only 6% came from women.

The study also found that visual representation was heavily male-dominated. Male farmers appeared far more frequently in images and disaster narratives, while women’s roles in seed preservation, drying paddy, postharvest processing, household food management, livestock care, and recovery work were rarely highlighted.

This invisibility is not only a media issue. When women are not recognized as farmers in public narratives, they are also more likely to be excluded from relief, compensation, agricultural support, and disaster recovery systems. The study argues that inclusive disaster reporting is essential for ensuring women’s recognition in agriculture, policymaking, and climate-related response mechanisms.

The article calls on media institutions, policymakers, and disaster response agencies to recognize women as agricultural actors, include women’s voices in disaster reporting, strengthen gender-disaggregated data systems, and ensure that relief and compensation mechanisms reach women farmers, informal cultivators, and women-headed households.