Over six lakh people of 1.20 lakh extremely poor families, living on their raised plinths in low-lying remote char areas, have been escaping current floods effectively now like in the previous years on the Brahmaputra basin.
Side by side escaping floods, these beneficiary families of Chars Livelihoods Programme (CLP) have been saving properties, cattle heads and providing shelters to other displaced people as their houses have been inundated now in neighbouring areas.
Livelihoods Coordinator of CLP Dr Mahbub Alam said the char people have been enjoying the privilege following implementation of the comprehensive CLP activities by a number of NGOs since 2004 in ten northwestern riverine districts on the Brahmaputra basin.
Under the programme, 1.20 lakh extremely poor households living in char areas of Kurigram, Bogra, Gaibandha, Sirajganj, Jamalpur, Lalmonirhat, Nilphamari, Rangpur, Pabna and Tangail districts have also become self-reliant so far.
Plinths of 55,000 poorest households were raised under CLP phase-I during 2004-2010 and 65,000 out of 75,000 households so far under phase-II (2010-2016) along with providing assistance to improve livelihoods of 1.9 million extremely poor char people by 2016.
The CLP has been working with the extremely poor households living on riverine island chars to improve their livelihoods and has raised plinths for 1.20 lakh char families so far since 2004 in ten northwestern districts, he said.
The UKaid through the Department for International Development and Australian Government through Australian Agency for International Development have been jointly funding implementation of the CLP.
Under the sponsorship of the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives and management through Maxwell Stamp Plc, CLP is being executed by the Rural Development and Cooperatives Division.
The programme is being implemented in collaboration with GO-NGOs on the chars in Kurigram, Bogra, Gaibandha, Sirajganj, Jamalpur, Lalmonirhat, Nilphamari, Rangpur, Pabna and Tangail districts.
Talking to BSS, Taramon Bibi, Bir Pratik, and Chilmari upazila chairman Shawkat Ali Sarker, Bir Bikram, said CLP’s plinth-raising programme has become effective to escape floods by the char people side by side improving livelihoods in recent years.
CLP beneficiaries Makduda, Lalbanu and Shahera Begum of Ghughumari Char and Halima Begum of Char Krishnapur in Kurigram, Rahela and Kulsum of Purbo Char Gunai village in Rangpur termed plinth-raising as their savior in escaping floods.
Agriculture and Environment Coordinator Mamunur Rashid of RDRS Bangladesh, one of the programme implementing organisations, said CLP assists the char people to adapt with climate change and also achieve self-reliance through income-generating activities.
The floodwaters could not inundate houses of CLP beneficiaries also having access to sanitation, safe drinking water, healthcare, hygiene, education, microfinance and nutrition for mothers and children under adverse situations, he added.
