Strengthening community and health system resilience to climate change in Bangladesh
Categories: Action Line 2: Evidence-based policy strategy and capacity building, Climate-informed health programmes, Climate-related emergency preparedness and management, Climate-smart workforce, Climate-transformative leadership and governance, Health and climate research, Air quality, Drought, Floods, Food and water insecurity, Health systems wide resilience, Heat and cold, Storms
Country: Bangladesh
Organizations: United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Bangladesh
The intervention
Projects funded by Sida and FCDO improved community resilience to climate impacts on health - particularly for women, newborns, and adolescents - in three districts of Bangladesh. Interventions included household counseling by community volunteers, behaviour change communication through tailored materials and street dramas, and the introduction of nine climate-resilient family standards. These led to improved practices such as safe delivery planning, hygienic sanitation, waste management, kitchen gardening, backyard and school plantations, and the adoption of clean cookstoves. Complementary initiatives piloted a Green Hospital model, integrated sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and climate change modules into health worker training, and strengthened local preparedness and response planning.
Success factors
Success was driven by a systems-wide and participatory approach. Vulnerable communities were engaged through collaboration with local authorities, national counterparts, and community leaders - including religious figures and teachers- to ensure ownership and acceptance. Rather than imposing predefined interventions, implementers allowed communities to articulate their priorities and needs, fostering trust and relevance.
Recommendations
Replication of this initiative requires empowering communities to lead resilience efforts and strengthening local systems and services. Program design should explicitly address gendered and generational disparities, ensuring that women’s heightened vulnerabilities and men’s risk perceptions are both considered. Communication strategies must move beyond social media to rely on context-appropriate, community-based channels that can effectively reach remote populations and foster inclusive participation in resilience-building activities.
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