As floodwaters repeatedly inundate homes in the haor basin and drought tightens its grip on the high Barind, survival for millions in rural Bangladesh has become an annual test of endurance, reports UNB.
Climate change has turned once-predictable seasons into cycles of uncertainty - washing away crops in one region while parching fields in another.
Against this backdrop, the government has approved the Tk 12.68 billion (1,268.80 crore) Climate Resilient and Livelihood Enhancement Project (CRALEP), aiming to reduce poverty and strengthen climate resilience among vulnerable communities living in flood-prone haor and drought-prone high Barind areas.
The project, to be implemented from January 2026 to December 2030, will be executed by the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) under the Local Government Division.
It will cover 33 upazilas in eight districts in Mymensingh, Dhaka, Chattogram, Sylhet and Rajshahi divisions.
The project is jointly funded by the government, international lenders and development partners. Of the total project cost, Tk 3.05 billion will come from the government, Tk 8.54 billion as loan from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and Tk 1.09 billion as grant from Denmark's development agency, DANIDA.
Officials involved in the project say CRALEP aligns with national development plans and climate strategies, placing particular emphasis on resilient infrastructure, food security and livelihood diversification at a time when climate-induced disasters are becoming more frequent and severe.
The project seeks to address poverty not as an isolated economic issue, but as a consequence of repeated climate shocks.
In the haor areas, early floods often destroy standing Boro crops, while in the Barind tract prolonged dry spells undermine agricultural productivity and household incomes.
To improve connectivity and market access, CRALEP will construct or upgrade 334 kilometres of rural roads - 141 kilometres in haor regions and 193 kilometres in Barind areas. Another 58 rural markets will be developed or rehabilitated, alongside the construction of 34 ghats to support water-based transport in flood-prone zones.
The project also places strong emphasis on livelihoods. Vocational training will be provided to 40,000 youths, while 20,150 youths will receive entrepreneurship training to encourage self-employment. Besides, nearly 3,000 members of Labour Contracting Societies will receive sustainable livelihood support.
Recognising the acute vulnerability of haor settlements during monsoon floods, the project includes the provision of internal village services in 320 haor villages. These include walkways, toilet blocks and tube-wells, along with the construction of 72 killas -raised platforms used for temporary crop storage and shelter during floods.
Further interventions include the construction of 72 kilometres of internal walkways, installation of 480 toilets and 720 tube-wells in haor regions, and ecosystem-based village protection measures in 280 haor villages as part of nature-based solutions to disaster risk.
