Davide Zappa, Thematic Expert Disaster Risk Reduction of the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO), European Commission along with the ECHO team, RIMES (Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System), and Save the Children team visit YPSA Head Office and consultation with Government administration and community people who are living with the threat of landslides from 30th September to 1st October 2024.
During the first day of the visit, visitors meet with YPSA management and project team members of the funded project ”Anticipatory Action for Landslides Causing Displacement for Communities in Chattogram Districts in Bangladesh” in the meeting room of the YPSA Head Office. Nasim Banu, Director (Social Development) of YPSA welcomes visitors to the YPSA office. Md. Abdus Sabur, Assistant Director of YSPA presented the YPSA initiative on community mobilization while Ms. Fatema Meherunnessa, Manager, Anticipatory Action, Save the Children presented the Progress of the ECHO HIP Project which is implementing in Chattogram and Bandarban District.
YPSA presented that the project has just started and YPSA organized an Inception meeting in Chittagong City and Ashika Development Associates will be in full swing of activities within soon in Bandarban district. Md. Mostak Hossain, Director of the Humanitarian Action, Save the Children in Bangladesh said that Save the Children started 2 projects for the Protection of people from landslides hazards in Chittagong and the Chittagong Hill Tracts with the support of YPSA which are the first kind of initiative in Bangladesh. There are different contingency plans for disasters and stakeholders and community people are aware of disaster management issues but there are no policies and action plans for evacuation and rehabilitation approaches for landslide victims. So, Save the children prioritized the Anticipatory Action Plan for the survive of the people from landslide havoc.
Ms. ORLANDINI Anna, Head of Office, and Mokit Billah, Program Officer of ECHO Bangladesh, European Commission mentioned their priority on sustainable solutions for the landslide problem and protection of hills from community settlement in Bangladesh because of a new dimension of the program. During the meeting, Palash Chowdhury, Director ( Finance), Mohammad Shahjahan, Director ( KM4D) of YPSA, Raihanul Hauque Khan, Country director of RIMES, Mohammad Simon Rahman, Senior Manager (Humanitarian), Save the Children in Bangladesh, Javed Meandad – Manager (Anticipatory Action), Save the Children and YPSA officials were present.
Later on, the visitors met with Md. Tofail Islam, Divisional Commissioner and Acting Administrator of Chittagong City Corporation in Chittagong City Corporation Office to knowledge exchange sharing meeting about the learning of Govt initiative on Disaster Risk Reduction Strategy and hill management policy of Bangladesh. During the meeting Shekh Md. Touhidul Islam, Chief Executive Officer, and Lt Commander Latiful Haque kajami, Chief Conservation Officer of Chittagong City Corporation attended the discussion event.
Md. Tofail Islam shares the different environmental management and disaster risk reduction initiatives of Chittagong City Corporation for inhabitants of Chittagong city and different challenges such as water logging, waste management, sanitation and drainage system, landslides and reducing hills creating development disasters for us which creating havoc for the communities. However, the city corporation trying to build awareness programs for the communities in one platform with the support of civil society and NGOs.
At present no disaster management committees are functional in Chittagong City due to the political crisis but hopefully, the committee will be reformed soon and actively involved in disaster management by the active volunteers and community people. The visitors ( ECHO, RIMES, Save the Children, and YPSA team) said to the Chittagong city corporation administration that the Implementing ECHO HIP Project will work to strengthen early warning systems for landslides by ensuring timely communication to minimize the impact of such disasters. It will identify existing gaps, propose solutions, improve coordination among stakeholders, and provide suggestions to the Government for developing “ “Landslide Early Action Protocol”. The project will also provide disaster management training to local communities, volunteers, and youth groups while raising awareness through voice messages and weather alerts.
On the same day, the ECHO team, RIMES, and Save the Children discussed with the community people who are living hills of Matijharna, Lalkhanbazar area of Chittagong City Corporation area. This place is mostly known as landslide hazard zone and every year numbers of death cases recorded after the incident happen. The visitors ask the community people about the duration of living, risks and vulnerabilities, early warning message dissemination, evacuation during disaster period, shelter place facilities, protection strategies, and their expectations from the Government and other stakeholders. Communities said that they are living in the hills over the long years and they have experienced on landslides in different times. Although they know the life risk of landslides they are living here because of low housing rent, easy access to the job market, and employment opportunities.
Most of the people in the hills are climate migrants who are coming from climate change-induced disaster hotspot areas after losing their housing and properties. The people said that they got the early warning message for cyclones and heavy rainfall from miking by city corporations and Volunteers as well as different electronic media. While the message deliver for left the houses for safe shelter, service providers cutoff the electric, gas and water supply line immediately. The full area was dark and no facilities at that time people left their houses for safe shelter but due to no facilities in the shelter center after some moments they returned to their houses with the risk of life and landslides. They also suggested for constructed the protection walls for survive the communities from landslides and plantation program in the hills. Communities said that if the government administration and other stakeholders take the initiative to relocate them, it is easy to say that everyone will leave the hills.
Next Day 1st October, the ECHO, RIMES and Save the Children team came to the YPSA office to share their field visit experiences. In the meeting ECHO team has given their suggestion for best approach for take initiative for protection of people from landslides through different technology based initiative and community participation process with the close engagement of different stakeholders. They have highly appreciated the stakeholder consultation and community people discussed over the hill top of Matijharna area.
Save the Children and YPSA representatives has given acknowledge to ECHO team for field visit and provided suggestion for better implementation of the program in future. After the meeting, the ECHO team visited the YPSA Safety First Center of Shipbreaking workers in Sitakund upazila. During the visit, Mohammad Ali Shahin, Assistant Director of YPSA welcomed them and showed them different initiatives in the center. The team also visited a shipbreaking yard before arriving at the center.
This is mentionable that YPSA is implementing 2 programs in Chittagong City Corporation and Banskhali upazila with the support of Save the Children to strengthen the early landslide warning system in Chattogram, as climate change has increased the unpredictability of seasonal cycles, posing significant challenges to landslide prevention and disaster management. The project “Child-centered Anticipatory Action for Better Preparedness of Communities and Local institution in Northern Area in Bangladesh” started from February 2024 to August 2026 with the support of the German Federal Foreign Office. On the other hand, European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations ( ECHO ), European Commission funding the project “ Anticipatory Action for landslides causing displacement for communities in Chattogram Districts in Bangladesh” since July 2024 to February 2024. Both the project was technically supported by RIMES (Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System) and Save the Children.