Context
Bangladesh is one of the countries most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Global warming has increased the frequency of extreme weather events, such as tropical cyclones, floods, severe rainstorms and droughts. Bangladesh’s coastal region faces a rising sea level; high tides and saline water are already encroaching further inland and destroying agricultural land. In 2007, Cyclone Sidr caused an estimated 2.3 billion USD of damage, primarily along the coast. Harvests, livelihoods and essential infrastructure, such as approach roads and school buildings, as well as the houses, ponds and tube wells of over two million families were destroyed. The same area was affected again in 2009 by Cyclone Aila. Large parts of the embankments were breached, flooding the homes and farmland of thousands of people.
Objectives
Selected vulnerable communities in Barguna, Patuakhali and Bhola districts have become more resilient to natural disasters and the impacts of climate change. Farmers have adopted appropriate farming methods, while communities, schools and households have an increased level of awareness and preparedness.
Approach
The project combines efforts to restore the livelihoods and means of production destroyed by the two cyclones with approaches for medium- and long-term adaptation to climate change. It focuses on vulnerable households in the districts of Barguna, Patuakhali and Bhola. It provides support for climate-resilient agricultural production and alternative income-generating activities, as well as community- and school-based disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA).
Beside the cooperation with government institutions the project collaborates with different non-governmental organizations (NGOs) at national and local level, e.g. the Resource Development Foundation (RDF), the Wave Foundation, Gonoshastha Kendra (GK), INCIDIN Bangladesh and the Association for Disaster Mitigation and Development (ADMD).
Impact
The promoted agricultural measures helped to improve food security in the project area, in particularly of female headed households. The income of more than 6000 vulnerable households has been increased; in addition 82 % of the beneficiaries were able to save 250 to 4.000 Bangladesh Taka (BDT) to be better prepared for future disasters.
Since project inception more than 100 disaster-preventive rehabilitation measures (e.g. construction and repair of access roads, dikes and irrigation canals, plantation of trees, erosion control, etc.) have been implemented. Around 250.000 people in the affected communities are benefitting from project activities.
Community-level disaster preparedness action groups have been formed and contingency plans has been developed, which pay special attention to female-headed households and members of deprived minority groups. In cooperation with the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS) and the Cyclone Preparedness Programme (CPP) more than 1000 volunteers (635 women) were trained in disaster preparedness, community-based first aid, search and rescue and water rescue. In addition to training the CPP-Volunteers received essential equipment. The project jointly with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) developed text books on ‘Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction’ for primary and secondary schools, which can be applied nationwide.