Just Resilience: Equity-Based Climate Change Adaptation in Bangladesh

The report advocates for 'Just Resilience' in Bangladesh, combining climate resilience with climate justice to prevent marginalized groups from being overlooked in adaptation planning. It examines the disproportionate impacts of climate hazards—such as salinity intrusion affecting 53% of coastal areas and erratic rainfall causing floods—on women, children, the elderly, and landless farmers. The document analyzes three key sectors: agriculture, where it highlights the need for climate-resilient crops and the Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100; disaster risk management, focusing on the National Plan for Disaster Management 2021–2025; and energy, noting the low share of renewables (2.76%) and the need for rural energy security. It concludes with recommendations for inclusive decision-making, standardized accountability metrics, and the use of biotechnology and indigenous knowledge to build equitable resilience.

• Bangladesh is highly vulnerable to climate change, with specific hazards causing severe regional damage: cyclonic storm surges in the south, droughts in the northwestern Barind region, and salinity intrusion affecting 53% of the southern coastal area. Salinity is linked to health issues including hypertension and miscarriage in coastal communities.
• The 'Just Resilience' framework is proposed to address the exclusionary nature of current policymaking, where affluent areas and industries are prioritized over marginalized groups. It advocates for a 'no-harm policy' to ensure adaptation does not cause further harm or lead to maladaptation, such as the forced migration of rural populations into overcrowded urban slums.
• In the agricultural sector, climate change and human factors like urbanization and brick field proliferation reduce arable land. While the Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100 (BDP 2100) aims for long-term resilience through strategies like aquaponics and solar irrigation, an investment of $38 billion is required by 2030 to support 65 infrastructure and 15 institutional projects.
• Bangladesh's disaster risk management is guided by the National Plan for Disaster Management (NPDM) 2021–2025 and the National Adaptation Plan (2023–2050). These frameworks emphasize 'Build Back Better' and provide social safety nets, including climate-resilient housing and low-interest loans for vulnerable groups.
• The energy sector is dominated by fossil fuels, with renewables (hydropower, solar, and wind) providing only 2.76% of the total power supply. Energy insecurity disproportionately affects rural communities, who experience an average of 6 hours of load shedding daily. High land acquisition costs make solar energy production three to four times more expensive in Bangladesh than in India or Pakistan.

APA

Ahmed, M. U. (2024). Just Resilience: Equity-Based Climate Change Adaptation in Bangladesh. Climate Strategies. https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Bangladesh-Report-S2S-2024-4.pdf

Chicago

Ahmed, Minhaz Uddin. Just Resilience: Equity-Based Climate Change Adaptation in Bangladesh. Climate Strategies, 2024. https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Bangladesh-Report-S2S-2024-4.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Ahmed |first1=Minhaz Uddin |title=Just Resilience: Equity-Based Climate Change Adaptation in Bangladesh |publisher=Climate Strategies |date=2024 |url=https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Bangladesh-Report-S2S-2024-4.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{ahmed2024just, author = {Ahmed, Minhaz Uddin}, title = {{Just Resilience: Equity-Based Climate Change Adaptation in Bangladesh}}, institution = {Climate Strategies}, year = {2024}, url = {https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Bangladesh-Report-S2S-2024-4.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }