Bangladesh experiences 19 landslides annually, with a 4% increase in these disaster events each year. They are particularly prevalent in the Chittagong Hill Tracts and surrounding districts including Chittagong because of intense monsoon rainfall, rapid urbanization, deforestation, and unregulated hill cutting. These events have caused over 700 deaths since 2000, destruction of infrastructure, and long-term displacement.
Save the Children organized the ‘Launching of the Landslide Inventory App and National Level Consultation on Sector-Specific Early Warning Advisories for Anticipatory Action’ to collaborate with the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD), government representatives, technical experts, sectoral stakeholders, and the Anticipatory Action Technical Working Group. The event was held at the Lake Shore Hotel in Gulshan, Dhaka, on July 13, 2025, to develop a national inventory for Landslide and enhance community-level preparedness and facilitate anticipatory actions across various sectors with the support of European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO)-HIP and German Federal Foreign Office (GFFO). It is part of their joint contributions to Pillar 2: Risk Information and Early Warning, as outlined in the National Early Warning Roadmap, endorsed by the Government of Bangladesh, with a focus on enhancing early warning information for landslide-prone areas in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.
The event officially launched the landslide inventory app, which provides real-time data on landslides. Save the Children and Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System for Africa and Asia (RIMES) will trainee a pool of individuals including youth and Union Disaster Management Committees (UDMC) members on how to use the app to support their communities. It also brought together all relevant stakeholders, including academia and government ministries, to share their combined perspectives on early action planning and message dissemination, with the aim of refining and validating this messaging for sector-specific early warning advisories. Together, they worked on enhancing institutional coordination and preparedness on landslide risks across Bangladesh.
With guidance from the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD), and under the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) and the German Federal Foreign Office (GFFO)-funded Anticipatory Action for Landslides initiative, Save the Children and the Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System (RIMES) successfully hosted the Launching Event of the Landslide Inventory App, followed by a National Consultation on Sector-Specific Early Warning Advisories.
The event took place on 13 July 2025 at Hotel Lakeshore, Dhaka, and brought together key stakeholders to strengthen landslide risk management through technology, collaboration, and anticipatory action.
Director General of the Department of Disaster Management, Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief (MoDMR), Mr. Razwanur Rahman:
I urge everyone to share the innovative app we are sharing today with all stakeholders who can put it to the best use. The government has early warning protocols for floods and cyclones. The next step is harnessing technology to ensure that communities are prepared and alert. I believe that our collective technical experience and skills can make that a reality.
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