Experts at a discussion yesterday stressed the need for taking comprehensive policies and preparing assessment tools in a bid to increase the resilience of city dwellers to disasters. They highlighted that urban Bangladesh frequently faces many vulnerabilities, including earthquake, fire, water-logging, flood, building collapse and pollution.

CARE Bangladesh and Christian Aid jointly organised the discussion titled ‘Urban Disaster Resilience in Urban Sector Policies’ in the fourth Annual National Conference on Urban Resilience to Climate Change at the Institute of Architects Bangladesh, Agargaon, in the capital, said a press release.

Md Abu Bakar Siddique, director of the Department of Disaster Management; Palash Mondal, UNDP disaster preparedness specialist; Ead Becirevic, DRR Delegate, German Red Cross; Kazi Shahidur Rahman, humanitarian programme specialist, UNRC; and Khondker Rebaka Sun-Yat, executive director of CUP were present.

The speakers said although the government of Bangladesh developed and implemented a number of policies, strategies and tools for disaster risk reduction (DRR), there still exists a large gap in urban-specific DRR framework in Bangladesh, added the press release.