Background
Name of the Donor: INKOTA, Germany
Project Duration: July 2026- June 2029
Coastal communities in Bangladesh face growing climate-change challenges. Rising salinity, freshwater shortages, and frequent disasters are affecting agriculture, livelihoods, and daily life. Many farmers can grow only one crop a year, while others struggle to earn a stable income. Women and marginalized groups face additional challenges. They have limited access to safe drinking water, income opportunities, and essential services. Their participation in community leadership and decision-making also remains low. Weak local planning and limited resources make these challenges even harder to address. To respond to these challenges, LEDARS is implementing the Building Resilience through Inclusive Development and Gender Empowerment (BRIDGE) project. The initiative focuses on climate-resilient agriculture, safe drinking water, women’s economic empowerment, and community-led advocacy. It aims to improve livelihoods, strengthen climate resilience, and ensure that vulnerable communities have a stronger voice in shaping their future.
Goal of the Project
Objectives
The target Communities achieve higher crop production and income, recognize women as self-reliant and influential actors, increase their health and well-being, and hold political actors accountable for taking climate-protective measures.
Major Interventions
1) Peoples Organization Formation and Capacity Building: LEDARS will mobilize vulnerable people and form people’s organizations like Climate Resilient Groups, Women Self-Help Groups (WSHG), and Climate Action Forum in the working area. LEDARS will build the capacity of the people’s organizations on organization management, climate change, adaptation, mitigation, climate-smart technologies, WASH facilities development and maintenance, disaster management, etc. LEDARS will also build the capacity of financial and Shelf Help Groups management of WSHG leaders.
2) Promotion of Climate-Resilient Agriculture and Food Security: LEDARS will provide training, awareness and equipment support to the selected farmers for the adoption of climate-smart technologies to address climate shocks. Monthly Climate Field School sessions and mass awareness-raising will help the farmers learn about adaptive farming, soil management, water-efficient management, ecological intervention, food security, etc. LEDARS will establish bill boards, publish booklet on the topic mentioned above. LEDARS will supply stress-tolerant rice and vegetable seeds, organic fertilizer, provide support to mini pond and canal excavations to store rainwater, and establish Model Resilient Farms to demonstrate the technologies in their areas.
3) Community Seed Houses Development and Climate Innovation: LEDARS will provide skill training and materials to establish the community seed house to preserve local seed and disseminate it among farmers. Community seed houses will help farmers preserve and share climate-resilient seeds. Selected farmers and women will receive training on seed production and preservation.
4) Climate Innovation: LEDARS will develop a Model Resilient Farm in the community with appropriate technologies to adapt to climate change. LEDARS will organize a Climate Tech Summit that will bring together farmers, researchers, students, and technology providers to share practical innovations. These activities will showcase the farmers’ adopted technologies in the fields and demonstrate scientific technologies so that community people, young researchers, academicians, and other technology providers can access sustainable technologies of climate change adaptation.
5) Women’s Empowerment and Sustainable Livelihoods: LEDARS will form Women’s Self-Help Groups (WSHG) and provide seed money as revolving funds. LEDARS will provide training on organizational and fund management so that they can run the organization smoothly. Besides this LEDARS will conduct an assessment on alternative income-generating options suitable for the vulnerable women and provide training on selected income-generating activities. Members also receive training on climate-resilient livelihoods and small business management and market linkage development of production.
6) Establishment of Community Food Security: LEDARS will establish a community food bank in the village to preserve rice periodically. Community members save a small amount of rice from their daily usage, preserve it in a pot and deposit it in food banks, which will be used to mitigate food shortages during and after disasters. Women’s Self-Help Groups will manage these food banks with support from LEDARS. Clear management guidelines will be developed to run and manage rice and money. This initiative will strengthen community cooperation and food security.
7) Access to Safe Drinking Water: Safe drinking water is a major concern in coastal villages. LEDARS will establish Reverse Osmosis (RO) and Bio-sand Filters to purify surface and salty water. In addition, LEDARS will help the community to activation of inactive Pond Sand Filters (PSF) forming a water management committee to take care. LEDARS will provide training to the committee to operate and maintain these facilities. This approach will help communities manage their own drinking-water sources.
8) Gender Equality and Human Rights: LEDARS will organize gender awareness workshops and coordination meetings with service providers so that women get optimum support from the government. Those events bring together women, community leaders, government officials, and service providers. Participants will discuss women’s rights, gender-based violence, and access to public services. LEDARS also provides support to the people’s organizations to monitor gender-based violence, child marriage, etc. and take proper action to prevent it.
9) Climate Justice and Policy Advocacy: The project also conducts a wide range of advocacy activities from local to national level to raise awareness among policy actors to take appropriate measures to reduce climate change shocks in coastal communities. Community voices will be raised through public campaigns, policy dialogues, and meetings with government officials. Climate Action Forums will highlight the need for safe drinking water, stronger coastal protection, resilient housing, and increased climate financing.