This project promotes an integrated approach to disaster preparedness where community and institutional preparedness is combined with policy advocacy. This integration of activities, linking grassroots reality to the policy level, is based on tried and tested methodology piloted by AAB during DIPECHOII.

During the project a workshop on disaster preparedness issues will be conducted with the Ministry of Food and Disaster Management (MoFDM), Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) and the Ministry of Education (MoE). In this workshop, methods will be explored to incorporate risk reduction issues in education and health policies. In addition, the Comprehensive Disaster Management Program (CDMP) and the Disaster Management Bureau (DMB) will be consulted for their necessary input to develop agendas and catalyze the incorporation of local risk reduction concerns in national plans and policies of MoFDM. Follow up will be ensured through review sessions of key issues and the commitments made by the concerned ministries in the workshop.

The role of the media in conveying and disseminating preparedness messages to the government, the international community, and the corporate sector will be utilized in this project. The project staff will mobilise the media to pressure relevant actors to incorporate vulnerable people’s concerns in national policies, especially in education and health sectors. To achieve this, ActionAid will organize sharing workshops with local and national media and the Upazila administration of Kurigram and the Chittagong City Corporation (CCC). It will be important during these sessions to raise people's awareness of the responsibility of the authorities to protect large numbers of people who are vulnerable to the disastrous effects of earthquake and floods.


Another approach for putting earthquake preparedness issues on the policy agenda is the promotion of the Earthquake Vulnerability Atlas. This unique Atlas of the

Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) area has been piloted under DIPECHOII. The vulnerability atlas provides a bird’s eye view of the city’s vulnerability for earthquake disaster and detailed information for four wards. Under the DIPECHOIII project, detailed user friendly information will be developed for 23 high and moderate risk wards of the CCC (according to the atlas). The improved atlas will give a comprehensive view of vulnerability in the context of an urban setting, marking important buildings, schools and other public places as well as providing an overview of open spaces. In addition to reconfirming the significance of preparedness, this document will also enable the authorities to plan rescue operations, evacuations and make a contingency plan. Another of the atlas' main assets is that the City Corporation, the Chittagong Development

Authority, as well as the community can use the Atlas for “earthquake safe” urban planning. An information event will be organised to promote the Vulnerability Atlas with officials of concerned ministries, Disaster Management Bureau (DMB), Comprehensive Disaster Management Programme (CDMP), donors, Dhaka, Sylhet, Rajshahi and other City Corporation staff and media professionals.

In recent years, the Government has taken the initiative to construct school-cum-flood shelters in flood prone areas. In the context of this project three existing schools will be upgraded in the flood prone isolated Upazillas of the Kurigram district as a model of “Safe school-cum-flood shelter”. The project aims to establish these schools as examples to inspire authorities to undertake more of such initiatives. The model includes defining the criteria for selecting the schools to be developed as flood shelters. For example, priority is given to the schools which have already been used as shelter and which are at least 3-4 km away from existing government and non-government flood shelters. The model will ensure ownership of the development by the community through participation of vulnerable people in the management.

The Safe school-cum-flood shelter will include the following components: