Drinking water scarcity is a common experience for people living on Bangladesh’s southwest coast. The causes relate to the complex hydrological setting, with saline intrusion into both surface and groundwater. However, the severity of the water crisis varies from one community to another. The population here is diverse and includes socially disadvantaged people and ethnic minorities who deal with social inequity in every sphere of their lives – access to safe water is no exception.
Bangladesh
Pouring hope or pouring doubt – Navigating the aftermath of disasters in coastal Bangladesh
Cyclones and storm surges regularly damage infrastructure in southwest Bangladesh. Afsana Afrin Esha describes how her current research focus is informed by REACH fieldwork to understand how different drinking water technologies are affected.
Exit Strategy – sustaining and scaling water security impacts for the poor beyond 2024
After nine years of collective research on water security by over 50 global partners the REACH programme is due to close in 2024. While we are on track to meet the target of providing 10 million poor people with improved water security, this is a fragile outcome. We...
How social inequalities amplify water-related climate vulnerability
Dr Sonia Hoque, Dr Catherine Grasham and Dr Marina Korzenevica shed light on the lived experiences of water-related climate vulnerability to re-emphasise the importance of social research to ensure just outcomes in the fight against climate change.
REACH Climate Resilience Report: Water security is critical to advance climate resilience
Dr Katrina Charles summarises key messages from REACH’s new Water Security for Climate Resilience Report. The report synthesis six years of interdisciplinary research on climate resilience and water security.
Policy reform for safe drinking water services for rural Bangladesh: The SafePani model
This blog presents the SafePani model, a new institutional framework for rural water service delivery in Bangladesh.
Regulating rural drinking water services to manage risks and deliver safe water in Bangladesh
This blog discusses key findings from a journal article recently published in Global Environmental Change, as well as policy recommendations from a policy paper available in English and in Bangla.
New funding to improve water security for 10 million people in Africa and Asia
New funding from the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) will support REACH to improve water security for 10 million people in Africa and Asia.
Gender and WASH in Emergency: What happens when a super cyclone hits at the height of a pandemic?
In light of the two disasters that recently hit coastal Bangladesh, cyclone Amphan and COVID-19, Professor Mahbuba Nasreen shares key insights from her own research on gender and WASH in emergency from the past three decades.
Water security in times of crisis: how COVID-19 is impacting the rural poor in Bangladesh and Kenya
This blog, based on interviews led by our colleagues in coastal Bangladesh and rural Kenya, discusses the challenges faced by local water users and managers in the midst of the coronavirus.
