The Bangladesh Delta: A lighthouse case study

This case study report discusses current development strategy for the Bangladesh Delta, which reflects an integrated approach to disaster risk management and water resources management. In this context, special attention is given to the Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100 and the role of the World Bank in Bangladesh’s transition toward sustainable, climate-resilient development. The report goes over key building blocks of the government’s current delta management and highlights some aspects of the Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100 that may also be relevant to other deltas.

The paper concludes that while the implementation of the BDP 2100 is only just starting, putting Adaptive Delta Management (ADM) into practice will pose new challenges. First, the ADM principles will need to be adjusted to reflect local conditions and the country’s investment capability. Second, an enabling environment will have to be created. This entails setting up a legislative, governance, and monitoring and evaluation framework, based on clearly defined tasks and responsibilities and a mechanism for coordinating policies and activities across relevant agencies and ministries.