City Desk :
The Governments of the United Kingdom and Bangladesh today officially launched the UK-Bangladesh Hydrological and Meteorological Collaboration, titled “Enhancing Resilience through Improved Climate and Hydrometeorological Services (EnRICH)” Project, through official signing of Memorandum of Understanding between British High Commission (BHC), Dhaka and Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB), to strengthen the country’s flood forecasting and early warning capacities.
The Honorable Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and the Ministry of Water Resources was present at the event as the Chief Guest.”
“Today we secure our future with both better prediction and better protection,” said Hon. Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan, MoEFCC and MoWR launching the UK-Bangladesh Hydro-met Collaboration and NABAPALLAB expansion, emphasising that these twin initiatives combine nature-based adaptation and advanced forecasting to strengthen Bangladesh’s climate resilience., says a press release. Hon. Adviser also thanked as well as appreciated FCDO for supporting Bangladesh through the much needed EnRICH project.
This launch, inaugurated at a joint national-level event held at Pani Bhavan in Dhaka, is part of UK’s broader Bangladesh Climate and Environment Programme (BCEP) that addresses climate change and environmental challenges.
The project aims to enhance the country’s ability to anticipate and respond to extreme weather and climate hazards through timely, reliable, and user-focused warnings that improve resilience of at-risk communities.
Funded by the UK Government through the UK International Development, the project will be implemented in coordination of BWDB and BHC, Dhaka, andwith technical support from the UK Met Office (UKMO) through the delivery partner Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System (RIMES), from September 2025 to March 2026.The geographical focus area of the flash flood-prone districts in Sylhet, Sunamganj, Cumilla, and Feni.
Bangladesh, with its low-lying deltaic landscape, is one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries. Recurring risks and flash floods, cyclones, and extreme heat disrupt lives, livelihoods, and economic stability.
The severe 2024 floods in the eastern region, which caused widespread damage to infrastructure and agriculture, underscored the urgent need for a more robust early warning and preparedness systems.
Henry Thompson, UK Met office – WISER Asia Pacific Program Manager, presented on overall summary of the WISER Asia Pacific program and Bill Leathes, Stakeholder Engagement Manager, UK Flood Forecasting Center provided an introduction to Flood Forecasting Center of UK highlighting some of the initiatives relevant to Bangladesh like Flood Guidance Statement and Rapid Flood Guidance.
Mr. Raihanul Haque Khan, Country Program Lead of RIMES in Bangladesh shared the project overview and highlighted that this collaboration brings national ownership, community benefits, and long-term impact.
The EnRICH Project supports the Government of Bangladesh’s ongoing efforts to operationalise Impact-Based Forecasting (IBF) and strengthen resilience to climate-induced disasters, in alignment with national policies and the broader goals of sustainable development and disaster risk reduction.
It also complements other UK-supported initiatives such as the Nature-Based Adaptation towards Prosperous and Adept Lives and Livelihoods in Bangladesh (NABAPALLAB) project, implemented by CARE Bangladesh and partners.
The joint national event highlighted both projects’ contributions to building resilience-ecological and technological-across the country’s most climate-vulnerable regions.
It brought together representatives from the Ministry of Water Resources (MoWR), Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoECC), development partners, academia, civil society, and the private sector.
Mr. Md. Rafius Sazzad, P.Eng., Additional Director General (Planning Design and Research), BWDB, highlighted the launch of the UK-Bangladesh Collaboration on Hydro-met Services as a milestone initiative to enhance localized flood forecasting and early warning systems.
Partnering with the UK Met Office, the project aims to transfer advanced forecasting technology, build national capacity, and strengthen Bangladesh’s resilience against future floods.
“We are very much thankful to the UK Met Office. As The UK Met Office is recognized globally as a leading institute in weather and climate science and is one of the best in Europe for its advanced forecasting models and high-resolution data.”, Mr. Sazzad appreciated UKMO support.
Mr. James Goldman, Development Director and Deputy High Commissioner from the British High Commission, Dhaka in his remarks lauded the strong and long-standing partnership between the UK and Bangladesh in advancing climate resilience and disaster preparedness. Mr. Goldman stated, “We are committed to this partnership that we have with Bangladesh to strengthen climate resilience, protect natural ecosystems, and accelerate the transition to renewable energy.
And the work today is very much about partnership, it’s about sharing knowledge, it’s about sharing expertise and looking at how we can work together on these shared challenges.”
