Water Security in Bangladesh

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Water Security in Bangladesh

• Major General ANM Muniruzzaman, ndc, psc (Retd)
• President
• Bangladesh Institute of Peace and Security
  Studies (BIPSS)

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Bangladesh
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Areas vulnerable to climate-related water
challenges
German Advisory Council on Global Change
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Water Security of Bangladesh

• The main sources of water in Bangladesh are
  Rivers and Ground Water.
• Almost 800 rivers in Bangladesh, most rise from
  the Himalayan reign and fall into the Bay of
  Bengal.
• Bangladesh is situated in the deltaic part of the
  region.
• Bangladesh being a river-reign country is
• largely dependent on natural sources of water for
  living.
• Water scarcity in Bangladesh has two
• Dimensions one is internal and the other is
  external.

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Impact of Water scarcity in the North of
Bangladesh
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Concerns over water security in Bangladesh
Local Level Concerns

• Encroachment
• a. Filling in, occupation and converted into
  land
• b. Restricted flow
• c. Illegal infrastructure both private and
  public e.g. in Dhaka, out of 13 canals, 5 have
  been occupied by govt.
• 2. Pollution (tannery, textile, polythene)

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Concerns
3. Bio-diversity loss a. No fish in Buriganga,
Turag, Shitalakkha. b. Disruption of
ecosystem 4. Human health 5. Inter-family
Conflict over water body reduce productivity
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National level Concerns

• Unplanned water management
• a. Under 653 water management scheme, BWDB has
  constructed 12,000 km of embankment and 4,200
  hydrological structure including sluice gates
  among which 2000 sluice gate/control structure
  (approximately) doesnt work.
• b. Focus on dry season rice production
• c. Disruption of ecosystem flow
• d. Loss of fish production
• 2. Unplanned road and embankment restrict flow
• 3. Poor embankment construction and poor
  maintenance
• 4. Arsenic contamination.
• 5. Salinity encroachment.

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Arsenic presence in the ground water of Bangladesh
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Sea Level Rise Worst Case Scenario
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Regional Level Concerns

• BD-India Share 54 trans-boundary rivers
• Unilateral withdrawal water by the upstream
  countries.
• Only 8 of water falls vertically on BD
• 230 rivers with tributaries and distributaries
  criss-crossing BD
• 8 area are permanent water body
• 30 area are flood prone
• Huge sediment load.
• River linking projects.

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The map shows the Indian river linking project
(Proposed)
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Regional Level
Challenges in Water Sharing
1. Too much water in monsoon and too little water
in dry season 2. Construction of Dam and
embankment in the upstream a. This is been
threaten by upstream water withdrawal and
enhanced risk during flood b. Farakka A
problem of limited water c. Tipaimukh 3.
Allocation of water in lean period is a major
issue
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Conclusion
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Thank you
Bangladesh Institute of Peace and Security
Studies (BIPSS)