Project
Adaptive Delta management for climate resilient agriculture and food security in South-West and South-Central Coastal Bangladesh
Bangladesh, as delta country, faces complex challenges and an uncertain water and food situation. A Bangladesh-Dutch consortium will work, together with farmers and the government of Bangladesh, on creating new insights on adaptive delta management through living-labs. Nature based solutions for salinity and soil management and improved climate information services for farmers will be jointly studied and used to improve the connection between farmers practice and government policy.
Introduction
Coastal delta of Bangladesh has been experiencing significant climate change impacts over the last couple of decades. Cyclones, tidal flood, heavy rainfall, salinity intrusion and drought are increasingly affecting agriculture and food security. To achieve sustainable water and food security, a clear transition pathway is needed. This project aims to create a synergistic impact by aligning the long-term goals of the Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100 (BDP 2100) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030. The project will be led by Patuakhali Science and Technology University (PSTU), with Khulna University (KU) and Wageningen University & Research (WUR) as consortium partners. The Department of Agricultural Extension, under the Government of Bangladesh, will serve as a cooperation partner and focal point for BDP-related activities. Throughout the project, a living lab methodology will be employed. This approach enables seamless knowledge transfer from researchers to users and ensures that emerging questions from the field and society are rapidly integrated into new research directions.
Project description
The project seeks to address a key research question: what vision, agricultural transition pathways, and adaptive measures can facilitate sustainable adaptation and improve the livelihood of farmers living in the saline regions of the in-polder Bangladesh Delta? To achieve the overall goals by five years, this project set five work packages (WPs). WP-1 will work for identifying adaptive-transition pathways and stakeholders’ engagement for science policy interface. WP-2 will deal with nature-based solution of soil and water salinity together with co-creation of salinity information services for the vulnerable farmers. WP-3 encompasses co-creation of hydro-climatic information services. WP-4 involves data and project management and overall administration. Two living labs will be established in Patuakhali and Khulna district and one living lab will remain as mobile at sub-national level for working on science-policy interface. With these efforts project wishes to have impact on climate resilient agriculture, food security, improved livelihood and stopping urban-migration.
