In Bangladesh, river bank erosion is a regular phenomenon. The country is located in the delta of some of the world's largest rivers, like the Ganges (the Padma), the Brahmaputra and the Meghna. According to the Centre for Environmental and Geographic Information Services (CEGIS), 88780 hectares of land were eroded along the Brahmaputra, 27,990 hectares along the Padma and 38,510 hectares along their tributaries between 1973 and 2007 (IRIN, 2010). About 15 to 20 million people are at risk from the effects of erosion in the country while about 1 million people living in 94 upazilas (sub-districts) are directly affected by river bank erosion every year. According to various sources, 500 kilometres of river bank face severe problems related to erosion. The northwest part of the country is particularly prone to river bank erosion which turned the region into the most economically depressed area. About 1 million people are directly affected by river bank erosion each year and landlessness could be as high as 70 per cent (RMMRU, 2007).
IMPACT OF RIVER BANK EROSION
River bank erosion contributes immensely to the marginalisation process of a large number of people in the country by displacing households and adversely affecting their social and economic circumstances, triggering the flow of migration and increased urban poverty as consequences. Although a number of policies and Acts have been formulated with the aim of addressing the needs of the marginalised people, the country is far behind the task of developing appropriate guidelines for addressing the causes and consequences of river bank erosion. Unfortunately, river bank erosion does not draw the attention of the government and non-government agencies as the other disasters do.
The affected people do not have enough access to institutional support. They are included in the rehabilitation programmes on a small scale, while the issue is overlooked most of times. In every case, the fact remains bypassed that the affected people lose their properties as well as their social status and dignity. They become dissociated from their neighbours and are deprived of communication facilities. As long as they remain displaced from their homes, they are disconnected from their income sources, denied the right to their lands, food production and other livelihood options which prompts them to engage in new livelihood activities by migrating to distant locations. All these result in loss of their social dignity, level of income etc. The children become disconnected with educational institutions. Generally, the affected people lose the right to their water and sanitation-related hygiene and the ability to meet the other basic needs.
COPING MECHANISM
As part of their coping mechanism, the affected people depend on their local knowledge and strategies. When the rainy season comes and if the erosion begins, they start shifting their belongings to safer places. The households experiencing river bank erosion first send away their women and children to safe areas. Those who have access to boats and have manpower can save their belongings, while others often lose everything.
Immediate post-disaster settlements are temporary. Most of the affected people continue to live in the temporary shelters. To cope with the post-disaster period, many households are forced to sell their personal belongings in order to prepare for a new life and survive after displacement. Those who have the capacity to buy new lands leave the place. The places of resettlement are chosen considering their communication networks, availability of various options, social kinships etc. Other factors also impact on the choice of the new destinations. As part of a long-term survival strategy - caused by inappropriate support from the government and the NGOs - credits and loans from relatives and neighbours provide them with a lot of support in their bid to begin a new livelihood. It is not easy to have access to banks or other financial institutions for loans. Given this backdrop, post-migration livelihood becomes an important living strategy for the displaced households and the residents.
ADDRESSING RIVER BANK EROSION
A handful of non-government organisations (NGOs) have specific programmes targeting those affected by river bank erosion, although they come up with considerable volumes of efforts for addressing the other disasters too -- both natural and manmade.
The government of Bangladesh should include river bank erosion disaster in its five-year plans, and a clear vision should be set for addressing this continuing disaster. A database is required to assess the magnitude of river bank erosion and the number of people affected by it. A national habitat policy should be formulated that would ensure the shelter needs of thousands of people displaced every year. In all these phases, local government agencies should play the lead role, while they should have the statistics of the probable affected persons who are living on the erosion-prone side of a river. Along with these, local government agencies should be decentralised and have the required prevention capacity, along with accountability mechanism, with the aim of reducing erosion-vulnerability, and ensuring faster and effective response.
Besides these broader areas, it is immediately needed to implement some programmes in the river bank erosion-prone areas. These should include setting early warning systems and monitoring at critical periods using local knowledge in the vulnerable areas, construction of embankments in the whole erosion-affected areas, generating alternative employment opportunities related to fishing and taking initiatives to distribute 'Khas' lands among the vulnerable people. This 'Khas' land distribution programme may reduce the flow of migration to the urban areas.
During rehabilitation of the affected community in the erosion-prone areas, there should be a resettlement plan with income generating activities along with development of healthcare facilities, services and meeting education needs. NGOs can extend support to the task of providing flexible credit schemes to the affected people so that they can immediately restart their income-generating activities. NGOs can put in their efforts for rights-based advocacy campaign so that the affected people could be encouraged to demand their access to education, health care, sanitation and work opportunities, not only relief.
Considering the magnitude and intensity of the disaster of erosion, it is high time to develop national-level strategies for better adjustment of the affected people with flood and erosion.
The writer is national urban coordinator at World
Vision, Bangladesh.
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