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Donors propose $4b plan to fight natural calamities

Rejaul Karim Byron
Joint Damage Loss and Needs Assessment (JDLNA) Mission of 11 donors yesterday proposed to the government a $ 4 billion programme to mitigate natural disasters like cyclone Sidr to be implemented in the next 15 years.
The 70-member mission led by World Bank (WP.' estimated the preliminary loss in last November's cyclone Sidr at $ 1.6 billion, which is three percent of the country's GDP. The loss in agriculture sector was estimated at $ 440 million and transport sector at $140 million.
The WB's South Asia Region Lead Water Resources Specialist Masood Ahmad led the donors' side, while Economic Relations Division (ERD) Secretary Aminul Islam Bhuiyan led Bangladesh side at the meeting held at the ERD where the mission made the proposal.
The JDLNA Mission started the assessment on January 11 following the government's appeal for assistance for rehabilitation in the Sidr-affected south-west region of the country.
The mission visited the affected areas, talked to people on the damage caused by the November 15 cyclone, discussed with officials of different joinistries and prepared a 400-page draft assessment report. The draft was presented to the government at yesterday's wrap up meeting.
The areas of work under the 15-year programme include risk iden-tification and assessment, strengthening and enhancing emergency preparedness, national and community institutions' capacity building and mitigating risks arising out of natural calamities linked to climate changes.
The mission proposed $ 1.51 billion during 2008 to 2012, $ 1.39
billion during 2013 - 2017 and $ 1.09 billion during 2018 - 2022 for risk identification, disaster preparedness and mitigation programme.
"The mission gave a primary indication of what could be done for protection of people in the disaster-prone areas of the country in the long run,” the ERD secretary told The Daily-Star.
At the meeting, the donors said S 1.34 billion would be required for recovery and rehabilitation programme in the cyclone-hit areas. Of this, $ 270 million would be required for immediate recovery and $ 1.07 billion for medium term recovery, sources said.
The government at a meeting in December last year informed the donors that it would need S 2.2 billion for rehabilitation programmes in the Sidr-affected areas. ERD sources said the donors had already accepted aid commitment of $ 685 million from bilateral and multi-lateral donors. Of this, the WB. Asian Development Bank and Japanese government committed S 147 million as budget support.
The mission's assessment report would be sent to the ministries and departments concerned for their opinions by February 10, and it would be finalised by February 22 incorporating the opinions, sources said.
The donors said at the meeting in future they would provide assistance to Bangladesh on the basis of the S 4 billion programme proposed yesterday.