Slow-onset and
Persistent Disasters
The case of the Southwest
Updates for LCG DER
24 May 2012
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A focus on the southwest
Process
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A special meeting on waterlogging in September 2011
Formed a dedicated Task Force
Discussions among Task Force members
Discussions among UNDAF Pillar 5 members
A stakeholder consultation held on April 19 2012
initiating a comprehensive process
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Outcome: alignment and momentum
• The work of the Task Force has revealed an
alignment among stakeholders on:
– Key underlying issues
– The need for a consolidated approach
– Momentum to act NOW
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Why the southwest?
• There is a need; persisting poverty and
vulnerability to shocks
• There is no collective situational awareness we
all ascribe to
• There are:
• Multiple causes
• Multiple impacts
• Conflicting interests
• Suggest a model that can be used in other
vulnerable regions
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Consultation Objectives
• To share experiences and knowledge relating to root
causes of slow-onset and persistent disasters in the
South West region of Bangladesh;
• To create awareness and deeper understanding of the
root causes and impact of such slow onset persistent
disasters
• To identify some feasible solutions to mitigate the
situation
• To agree on a process and follow up actions
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To understand
What are the…
• likely root causes of the
persistent humanitarian
situation?
• most important impacts on
the communities?
• good practices of
Government and
stakeholders in responding?
• key gaps to be addressed?
• sustainable hydromorphological solutions?
• lessons and their
replication?
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Fragmented solutions
• Long term macro & infrastructure investment
• Medium term community development
• Short term: humanitarian response
• Different actors involved in each phase
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Different
Different
Different
Different
Different
communities
national government actors
local government actors
NGOs
development partners
With limited
connectivity
between
them
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Gaps and Challenges
• No shared situational over-view
• Deeper understanding of key issues needed
• Key baseline information should be
managed/available
• Improve inclusion of affected communities in
solutions
• Lack of coordination between stakeholders working
on different aspects of the situation
• Triggers that indicate the need for concern and
possibly response are not defined
• Humanitarian needs become long term, un-noticed
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The Challenge of Leadership
• A genuine challenge is identifying
leadership for a situation that crosses
multiple government ministries departments
and entities, and a range of different nongovernment partners at the national and
local levels.
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Key recommendations:
Short to medium term
• Establish DER-other LCG cross linkages
• Identify a coordination forum for the region
(emphasize and advocate for broad participation)
• Develop Triggers (entry & exit)
• Link Infrastructure development with community
participation
• Ensure humanitarian response is linked to ongoing
programs
• Identify the role of local government
• Commission a detailed socio-economic assessment
study
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• Advocate
Key recommendations: long term
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A master plan for comprehensive solution
Dedicated development authority
SW issues reflected in GoB’s 5 year plan
Link with Climate Change funds
River linking programmes
Policy on land sealing
Disaster resilient structures/habitat
Aquaculture development and marine based
industry
• Diversification of livelihoods/potential ecotourism (private sector engagement)
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Thank you
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