PROSPECTS OF EFFICIENT DISASTER MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORK IN BANGLADESH THROUGH GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP

Bangladesh is a disaster risk hotspot, ranked as a top country in terms of the risks of both natural and human-made disasters. High population density and the recent poverty rate increase due to the COVID-19 pandemic have made disaster management very challenging. Over the last decades, Bangladesh gained some capacity to cope with natural disasters. Yet, it lacks adequate resources, institutional capacity, and policy issues for comprehensive disaster management. These discrepancies can be mitigated through an effective global partnership and external assistance. Bangladesh is constantly struggling with its high population rate, increased poverty, malnutrition, and corruption. The recent COVID-19 pandemic and vaccination distribution program seemed to have a disproportionate impact between the urban and rural population. An international collaboration should be based on resource sharing, technology transfer, and experience sharing, etc. Developed countries can share their resources and technology, whereas Bangladesh can share its local adaptation experiences and other regular disaster management techniques. In this presentation, we would like to explore the possible common grounds of cooperation in disaster management in Bangladesh and developed countries.

Keywords: Disaster Management, Disaster Risk Hotspot, Pandemic and COVID-19.