Socio-Ecological Vulnerability Assessment of Drought and Flood-Saline Prone Regions in Rural Bangladesh

Abstract

The current study attempted to quantitatively measure the vulnerability status of selected regions in Bangladesh impacted by climate change. Three upazilas were selected in the drought prone region of Rajshahi, while another three upazilas were assessed in the saline-flood prone Barisal region. The Exposure, Sensitivity and Adaptive capacity of each upazila was measured through socio-demographic, agro-economic and infrastructural indicators inspired by the literature, RiceClima reports but also elicited from a household survey in the examined areas. The technique of Principal Component Analysis was used for the assessment of the indicators while descriptive statistics also helped for a better understanding of the current situation in the two regions. The findings indicated that the drought prone Rajshahi upazilas (North Bangladesh) are more exposed to inefficient irrigation management and lack of access to household’s utilities (water, electricity). The flood and saline prone upazilas of the Barisal region in South Bangladesh lack transportation, agricultural, education and health infrastructure on a regional level. In both regions, the introduction of cash crops and the improvement of market conditions in agriculture are deemed as necessary actions. 6