Desk Report: Bangladesh is one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to climate change and natural disasters, with over six percent of the population affected by disasters each year, reports Daily Asian Age.
Between 1980 and 2013, the average Bangladeshi was personally affected by two disasters.
The primary threats to Bangladesh are floods, droughts, cyclones and sea-level rise due to climate change.
Over the last thirty years, Bangladesh has experienced nearly 200 of these climate-related disasters, which have killed thousands of people, destroyed homes and livelihoods and cost the nation around $16 billion in damage and economic losses.
The northern districts of the country are highly susceptible to drought, while the southern districts experience heavy rainfall that results in major floods. Both these events have a significant effect on food security for the entire nation.
However, their ability to voice community priorities for government support, and reduce vulnerability to long term climate change impacts such as salt water intrusion, sea level rise, and extreme and unpredictable weather patterns remains highly questionable,” according to Hasan Mazumdar, Give2Asia’s Field Advisor and The Asia Foundation Country Representative in Bangladesh.
To address these issues, international donors have the opportunity to support these communities with grassroots solutions such as adapting farming practices to climate change and educating rural communities on early warning systems, evacuation routes, and shelters already in place. Ravaging the northern and northeastern Bangladesh, the flood now threatens the capital as all the rivers surrounding the city are showing rising trend.
The water levels in the Buriganga, Balu, Turag and Shitalakkhya have increased and many areas in the city would get inundated if the rains continued, says the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC). Though the flood situation in the northern districts improved yesterday, it worsened in the central part of the country.
Many low-lying areas in Dhaka and its neighbouring districts, including Narayanganj, Munshiganj and Gazipur, have already been flooded, causing sufferings to thousands of people there.