Better preparedness to confront natural disasters in Bangladesh
13 Oct 2011 Humanitarian crisesBangladesh
International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction.
In this country especially prone to natural disasters, the government has set up a national programme for reducing the risks linked to disasters. Mohammad Abdul Qayyum, National Director of the Comprehensive Disaster Management Programme, welcomed Terre des hommes in his office at the Ministry of Food and Disaster Management in Dhaka for a revealing discussion last June, at the beginning of the monsoon.
What are the main reasons for the disasters?
The geographical position of Bangladesh, situated as it is between the Himalayas and the ocean, on the delta of wide rivers, means that the country is very vulnerable to flooding. There is also the risk of earthquakes, caused by the Indian tectonic plate which is subducting under Asia. Climate change is producing a growing number of cyclones, and paradoxically, there is a greater risk of drought, as well.
What is the impact of climate change?
Bangladesh is one of the most susceptible countries to the planet’s climate changes. A rise in the sea level causes seawater to flow up the channels and flood farming land and drinking-water retention basins.
What is happening in the coastal communities along the Bay of Bengal like Pathargatha where Tdh runs a new project for health and safe water?
The people have to face several storms each year and even a cyclone every two or three years. Only two weeks ago, a storm caused a tidal surge and the dykes broke in places. Salt water engulfed the land and the villagers lost their crops.
And what are the dangers in the north, where Tdh has been working for over 35 years?
Erosion caused by the rivers is an important factor. The Brahmaputra changes its course every year, and after each flood, the people have to start from scratch again and rebuild their houses somewhere else, on a new sand bank.
In practical terms, what are you doing to reduce disaster risks?
We are trying to improve the resiliency of the community with state structural measures (building embankment, sea walls, anti-cyclone shelters) or non-structural ones (increasing the individual and community level of preparedness by raising homestead plinth areas, introducing community managed early warning systems). These sustainable measures should permit us to go from direct aid and the rehabilitation of victims to a situation where we can anticipate and lessen the impact of inevitable weather patterns, thanks to being well prepared.
