River Erosion in Bangladesh

When the severe flooding started two months ago in Bangladesh, river erosion was an earlier, and silent part of a climate change package that is worsening each year. When I was working here in 1999 and 2000 we supported the Bangladesh Red Crescent on a programme trying to identify the increasing number of water migrants who were being pushed out of the homes, before the major flooding hit. The Canadian Red Cross provided an information delegate to make a video of river erosion. I have sadly, forgotten her name, but she did a brilliant job of making the video. The EU provided funding.
This year Sam Smith the IFRC information delegate came to Bangladesh and wrote a very good article on river erosion where he wrote, "Some 17,000 houses have been completely washed away due to river erosion, according to government estimates." Here is the link.

I thought it might be useful to provide a summary of the video we made in 1999- 2000 from an issue of the The Magazine of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. I hope someone out there may still have a copy.

Federation and Bangladesh Red Crescent Society, 2000, 13 min.

This video shows how river erosion is breaking up traditional lives and families, and how it is impacting on the long-term future of Bangladesh. River erosion is a continuing problem throughout the country. While floods are often in the spotlight, river erosion is a silent and insidious disaster with devastating effects, including the loss of homes and farmland. The video, which aims to bring international attention to the issue, shows how affected families are coping with the problem and the efforts of the Bangladesh Red Crescent, with the support of the Federation and the European Union, to assist them in rebuilding their lives.