Increase local government budget allocation for effective disaster management in Bangladesh

Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to sea-level rise, powerful cyclones, frequent flooding, and many more such events. Communities are on the front line of the negative impact of climate change; they are the people most affected by and most vulnerable to the climate change crisis. The local government in Bangladesh plays a crucial role in disaster management. This brief outlines the implications of local-level financing gaps on disaster management, and makes several policy and practice recommendations. This policy brief has been developed based on the findings of Post Event Review Capability Study: Learning from the 2020 Floods in Faridpur District (Begum et al., 2021), interviews, and a number of small-scale studies carried out by the Zurich Flood Resilience Alliance (‘the Alliance'). This brief is also informed by the experiences of the Alliance’s partners of working with 15 flood-prone Unions in the districts of Faridpur, Lalmonirhat, and Gaibandha of Bangladesh.