Project Introduction:

Bangladesh’s coastal resources are ranked as next most vulnerable primarily because of its location. It experiences intermittent battering of tropical cyclones accompanied by water surge, salinity intrusion, erosion, high temperature, irregular precipitation, etc., apart from the threat of submersion due to sea level rise that hangs in the future. Previously, tropical cyclones used to hit Bangladesh every decade. Salinity was less of a problem. Erosion was limited. Precipitation followed a regular pattern. However, in recent years frequency of cyclones has increased, multiple cyclones with increased intensity have struck Bangladesh in a single year (Sidr, =Nargis, and Aila) causing severe damage to both life and property. Salinity intrusion has become critical, rendering agriculture almost impossible; green cover has almost vanished, even the Sundarbans’ existence is threatened. Erosion has increased significantly rendering people homeless and reducing them to the state of destitute. Temperature has increased significantly and incidence of diseases has increased. Irregular precipitation has damaged crops, severely affecting the poor farmers who live in a precarious state due to repeated catastrophes. The natural hazards affect the poor and the extreme poor severely due to their low coping capacity to shocks, and most often force them to migrate to urban or other areas in search of livelihood. However, the most critical problem that people of these coastal areas are confronted with is lack of drinkable safe water. The underground aquifer has become contaminated with saline water, even the deep tubewell provides water not fit for human consumption.

Project Agreement Number: 83189209

Overall Objective: The broad objective of the project is “to ensure equitable and sustainable access in safe drinking water in selected Upazilas of Satkhira and Khulna District.

Specific Objectives:

• To re-excavate 4 ponds and use those to preserve safe drinking  water drawn through  rainwater harvesting for the vulnerable community people of Shyamnagor and Koyra Upazila under Satkhira and Khulna district.
• To ensure effective management of the pond ensuring the participation of community people and relevant stakeholders.

Outputs:

• Community participation will develop a sense of ownership which, in turn, will contribute towards protection and maintain of the pond in the long run.
• Four ponds will ensure year-round supply of  safe water for the community people. .
• Training on DRR will capacitate and prepare communities to face disasters in the future.
• With close supervision and monitoring of the pond will be able to achieve its desired objectives

Project Components: Safe drinking water, climate change, DRR, community capacity building

Major Activities:

• Community people will be organized in groups where needed and/or use the existing groups formed earlier by DAM under a different project The organized group members will be used for  re-excavation and maintenance of  the pond
• Excavate the pond as required to conserve the safe drinking water.
• Develop the enclosure and greening around the pond.
• Fence to protect the embankment of the pond.
• Construct stairs/Ghat at the pond.
• Provide training to the pond maintenance group.
• Organize training on maintenance of the ponds. Actions will be taken by the groups to plant trees on the embankment of the ponds.

Project Participants (Direct):

Project Duration: December 2014 to December 2015

Financial partner (Donor):   GIZ

Implementing partner (if any): N/A

Project Location/s and number of Field offices: Shaymnagor, Satkhira.

Project Budget: 25 00 000

Number of project staffs and volunteers :