Non-governmental development organization BRAC has allocated BDT 50 lac for flood relief services across Bangladesh. Until 21 July, the organization has allocated dry food and cash assistance among 7,644 families in 30 Upazilas. With the new allocation, the development will now be expanded to all flood-affected districts.
Although water is receding from some of the districts, the flood could linger for a longer time, especially in the northern and central regions of the country. In this emerging humanitarian crisis, BRAC has originated a coordinated effort to ensure timely response in the form of relief, deploying numerous thousand relief workers in some of the worst affected districts.
BRAC’s water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) program have expanded operations to schools, embankments, and highways in Barguna and Gaibandha districts where hundreds of thousands of people have taken refuge. Every day, new sanitary latrines, bathing cubicles, and deep tube-wells are being built to cope with the rising demand.
“We are focusing on remote areas, especially where conducting relief operations have become difficult as a result of the damaged communication system. We are doing a quick needs assessment of affected families so that we can expand our operations rapidly,” said Asif Saleh, Acting Executive Director of BRAC.
People in Ulipur of Kurigram, Sarishabari of Jamalpur, Kalmakanda and Barhatta in Netrakona, Sylhet Sadar and Sariakandi of Bogura district are the latest Upazilas to come under BRAC’s relief operations coverage.
“We are coordinating our operations to complement the government’s relief efforts. If the situation does not improve soon, all concerned should come forward to support the various government and non-government efforts,” Asif Saleh added.
