(represented by the Embassy of Switzerland in Bangladesh)
In Bangladesh, the availability of water for domestic consumption, health and livelihoods is already a problem in many areas. Salinity of surface and groundwater in the southern coastal zone and water scarcity in the north-western part of the country due to drought and lack of rainfall are key factors affecting the health, livelihoods and living standards of local communities. Coastal dwellers are increasingly suffering from high blood pressure, skin, heart and kidney diseases etc. as a result of increased salt intake with water, while women in particular are suffering from eclampsia and gynaecological diseases due to poor menstrual management.
On the other hand, the existing waste management infrastructure shows that the average collection efficiency of waste in different urban areas is around 55%, which is dumped in landfills, while the rest is not collected or dumped. As much as 400 tonnes of waste is dumped by the roadside and in open spaces. One of the most detrimental effects of poor waste management, particularly of municipal waste, is the incidence and prevalence of diseases such as malaria and respiratory problems, as well as other illnesses due to groundwater contamination.
The project will work to address the challenges of IWRM (Integrated Water Resource Management) and SWM (Solid Waste Management) in Bangladesh and help make public service delivery in these two sectors more democratic and climate-resilient.
The project will
One of the project's objectives is to enable residents and businesses within a community to assess the quality of service delivery by public actors. The overall objective of the GO4IMPact programme is to contribute to strengthening local democracy and improving equitable and climate resilient delivery of basic public services in water and solid waste management in Bangladesh. This will be achieved through a systemic, adaptive and facilitative approach to strengthen the capacities of relevant actors, enhance dialogue between them and stimulate participatory and democratic decision-making processes.