Forests in Bangladesh has been declining since the British colonial era to the recent time with a high rate of deforestation varying between 0.3 to 2% per year. Between 1990-2015, Bangladesh annually lost 2,600 ha of natural forests with 0.2% deforestation rate. With 19 million forest-dependent people such deforestation and forest degradation are likely to continue and showing an increasing trend (0.75% deforestation rate during 2006-2014). Instead, forest protected areas (PAs) represent the most important remaining forests in Bangladesh however, they are threatened by high demands for timber, woodfuel, conversion of forest to agriculture, and infrastructure development. To tackle the situation, between 2003-2018, 18 PAs have been managed under the co - management approach and applied different alternative income generation activities (AIGAs) for livelihoods to regulating forest use and economic diversification. Tree plantation, buffer zone management, improved the wildlife habitat, use of improved cooking stove, community forest patrolling, and awareness raising are key biodiversity conservation strategies in PAs. Through co-management, local communities, forest resource user groups and other stakeholders play an important role in planning, decision-making and resource management. The study revealed that appropriate AIGAs significantly reduce the community forest-dependency which would eventually help restore the biodiversity of PAs in Bangladesh.