Project name: Adaptation Challenges of Climate Change-linked Migrants in Bangladesh and Locally-led Solutions
Time frame: 01st November 2024 to 30th April 2026
Supported by: Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)
Overview
Bangladesh is widely considered as one of the most vulnerable countries that bear the brunt of loss and damages of global climate change. The Groundswell Report 2021 projected that in a pessimistic situation, by 2050, 19 million Bangladeshis would be displaced solely due to slow on-set climate change processes. Every year, a large number of Bangladeshis are also displaced, mostly temporarily, due to the rapid onset of climate change processes. The displaced population uses all types of migration as adaptation tools. They move within their village, to surrounding villages and district sadars (headquarters). They move seasonally, temporarily as well as permanently. A section of climate activists initially argued that climate change-affected people will move cross borders or other international destinations. The Groundswell Report 2021 of course identifies migration in the context of climate change as predominantly rural to urban and within the affected persons' own country. The aim of this research is to empirically investigate the outcome of migration to selected Bangladesh cities in the context of climate change. It wants to find out under what circumstances such migration can produce successful adaptation and under what conditions it may result in the precarious urban existence of the affected people.
Objectives
• Influence of climate change on migration decisions from a gendered lens
• The nature of the economic, social, and cultural well-being of the new migrants, both male and female in the destination cities
• Type of challenges that members of migrant households face in the cities on the basis of age and gender.
• Types of services and protection measures required by the new migrants who have used rural-urban migration as a climate change adaptation tool
• Identify specific measures required for female migrants who moved in the context of climate change
• Find possible recommendations for alignment of policies of different ministries that are necessary to ensure access of rural-urban migrants in availing services that are offered by different ministries (including all 5 categories of the continuum)
• In line with attaining SDG 11, explore ways to accommodate the rights and needs of new migrants in the cities.
• For influencing policies conduct a thorough stakeholder analysis particularly considering current policymakers as well as policymakers who may take over after the next national election.