Addressing Urban Vulnerability to Climate Change:
Findings from Dhaka, Bangladesh
Craig Johnson and Iftekhar Haque
Department of Political Science and International Development Studies University of Guelph, Canada
Objective How cities are getting prepared to address
the challenge of climate change Mainstreaming climate change policies in
urban planning Management of urban fringe development
Climate Change and Bangladesh IPCC 2007: One of the most vulnerable
countries to climate change Short term climate shocks: Cyclones Floods Prolonged droughts Salinity Long term: Sea level rise
Flows of Migration from Climate Hotspots
“Migration to cities is the most common coping strategy”
Source: World bank (2010)
Dhaka’s vulnerability to climate change Excessive Rain
Water logging Floods
Damage of households in slums
Damage of roads Water borne diseases
Drought Heat/Cold Wave Temperature Increase
Growth of Dhaka City
1951 1961 1974 1981 1991 2001 20100
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
1600
1800
Population (in million) Area (sq km)
Population (million)
Area (sq km)
Methodology A six-month study in Dhaka’s Eastern
fringe key informant interviews Politicians Bureaucrats Urban Planners Academics Real Estate companies Survey of 200 households FGDs with affected populations
Detailed Area Plan: Violated by Government
Purbachal New Town
Jhilmil Residential area
Private Housing Projects
Detailed Area Plan: Violated by Private Sector
Illegal land filling for housing projects
Forced purchasing of land
Land grabbing
Possible Consequences Increased risk of floods and water logging Health hazards Loss of agricultural production Earthquake’s consequence will be dreadful Displacement Livelihood
Incidence of forced purchase by real estate companies
Forced to sell Land filled with sand0.00%
10.00%
20.00%
30.00%
40.00%
50.00%
60.00%
70.00%65.90%
40.46%
% of respondents
Agricu
lture
Shop
keep
er (s
mal
l)
Smal
l Bus
ines
s
Day la
bour
er
Land
Age
nt0
10
20
30
40
50
60
49.14
8.576.28
2.29 2.29
37.71
1215.42
5.71 6.71
20002010
Distribution of household heads according to major occupations (%)
42.29
57.71
Occupation changed in last ten yearsOccupation Unchabged in last ten years
Occupation changed from 2000-2010 (%)
Challenges Capital Development Authority’s dual role
as regulator and real estate Strong lobby of real estates and land
developers Influence on politics Media
Policy options Reform of the Capital Development
Authority (RAJUK). DAP implantation commission Justice Urban planners Environmental experts
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