FLOODS IN BANGLADESH(2007)

HAUNTING FLOODS IN BANGLADESH

Bangladesh is well known as being the worlds most flood-prone country, with monsoon floods and cyclones being almost an annual event; and severe flooding occurring every four to five years. Annual floods have wreaked havoc in Bangladesh throughout history. Amongst the 12 countries list by World Bank as most vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate extremes are: Bangladesh which is most susceptible to floods.

HISTORY OF THE FLOODS IN THE COUNTRY

During the last 50 years, at least 7 mega floods have occurred, affecting about 35-75% of the land area. Major flooding recorded in recent years occurred in 1987, 1988, and 1998, 2004 and 2007. A historical overview of floods since 1954 indicates that the frequency, magnitude, and duration of floods have increased substantially, probably due to climate change.

CAUSES
It is a very low lying country, with 70% of its land area merely 1 - 2 m above sea level. Bangladesh has a monsoon climate that brings torrential rain, and the volume of the annual torrential downpours often exceed the river capacity. Thawing snow from the Himalayas in springtime further increases the flood risks as torrents of melt water enter the rivers at their source.

IMPACT OF THE FLOODS

Killed more than 3500 people. The Category 4 cyclone triggered a 15-foot (5-metre) high tidal surge that devastated three coastal towns and forced 3.2 million people to evacuate. It affected 8.9 million people and 1.5 million people had their homes damaged or destroyed. Crops and food sources were also destroyed. Community infrastructure was destroyed with roads, trees and more than 2,000 schools damaged by the floods and storm.

 The impact on the economy was signifcant with Bangadesh's export industries seeing a 20% decrease in production with over 400 clothing factories forced to close. Communications became difficult, with shopping impossible in the main port, as well as roads and railways having been swept away making the distribution of aid and the rescue operation very difficult. Food supplies were severely affected as flooding destroyed the rice stocks with a total of 668,529ha of crops being destroyed

EMERGENCY RESPONSE
Government support: The government opened a total of 1,515 shelters in different locations which are now home to approximately 0.36 million people. Allocated rice 14200 MT rice and 28 millions BDT. Allocated for housing rehabilitation 22.5 millions BDT. Continuing dry/prepared food distribution with 10 million BDT and spent 7 million BDT on rescue operation. Around 62 government medical teams and a 6 member army medical team are serving for the flood affected people as water-born diseases are spreading fast.

By other agencies: ACTION AID distributed dry food to 6000 families in Jamalpur, Sirajganj and Faridpur districts and has further palns to reach 30,000 families. OXFAM planning to do food grain distribution for 40,000 families. CARE distributed relief to 100,000 families. CONCERN UNIVERSAL gave relief to 11,000 families. ECHO plans to allocate 2 million Euro for the flood response through its implementing partners in Bangladesh. They are inviting proposals from the different partners (INGOS). They have specified the need for the proposals to be very specific in targeting to avoid duplication in work.

RELIEF AND RECONSTRUCTION

National and international NGOs, including BRAC and the International Federation of Red Cross, geared up relief activities in the flood-hit districts by providing food, medical, water and sanitation support to the distressed population. From November 2007 to February 2008, Mercy-USA for Aid and Development, through the local partner Assistance for Humanitarian Development (AHD), helped 285 families (about 1,800 persons) severely affected by these floods to rebuild their lives. In August and September 2007, through our local partner Islamic Aid Bangladesh, Mercy-USA for Aid and Development distributed 58,200 pounds of food in packages containing rice, potatoes, lentils, and salt to 3,000 displaced families (about 15,000 persons).

EMERGENCY FOOD AID PROJECT DETAILS

Name of District
Sirajgonj Jamalpur Gaibandha

Name of Sub-District/Town
Shahjadpur Dewangonj Fulsori

Number of Beneficiary Families

500 500 500

Sherpur
Chandpur Tangail

Sherpur Sader
Hymechar Tangail Sader

500
500 500

REHABILITATION
Building Tin-shed Houses for worstly affected people of the area

REHABILITATION PROGRAMME IN BRIEF

NEED FOR RISK MITIGATION

THANK YOU