Heavy rains since 5 July, including renewed heavy rainfall in early August, have triggered widespread flooding and landslides across Bangladesh, affecting approximately 1.3 million people in seven districts of the Chattogram Division. Among those affected are an estimated 364,000 women of reproductive age, including 17,490 pregnant women.
Damaged roads, flooded pathways and landslides have isolated remote communities from hospitals, clinics and other essential services, further increasing sexual and reproductive health needs. Despite damage, a UNFPA-supported maternity facility remains operational through temporary arrangements and emergency referral mechanisms, helping ensure continuity of essential maternal health services.
Protection risks for women and girls increased as economic shocks drove reliance on negative coping strategies, including child labour and child marriage. For people displaced by the floods and landslides, overcrowded shelters, inadequate privacy and lighting, insufficient sex-segregated sanitation facilities, and shortages of menstrual hygiene supplies further compromise the safety, dignity and well-being of women and adolescent girls.
UNFPA continues to deploy essential supplies, midwives, community volunteers and mobile health services to affected areas. To date, 1,018 women and girls have accessed essential health services through four health camps and 15 deployed midwives at health facilities, while 6,326 people have been reached with gender-based violence risk mitigation support. UNFPA has also maintained seven safe spaces and distributed 4,500 dignity kits, 1,951 menstrual health management kits and 1,000 baby kits to affected women and adolescent girls.
UNFPA requires US$966,930 to ensure the continued delivery of life-saving reproductive health and protection services for affected women, girls and young people. To date, US$130,330 has been mobilized, leaving a funding gap of US$836,600. Urgent additional funding is needed to sustain and scale up critical interventions and ensure that reach those most in need.
