Cyclone shelters need sustainable development

Abstract

Purpose The coastal zone of Bangladesh that is in the front line of the battle against climate change faced over 200 natural disasters in the past 40 years, and most of the disasters were cyclones. The inevitable cyclone shelter (CS), the backbone of disaster management (DM), provides short-term safety for the disaster victims in Bangladesh. This study aims to explore the community-based limitations and sustainable development features of CSs including the gender issues. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire survey was carried out among 230 community people to identify the requirements and sustainable development features of CSs. A field visit was carried out in 23 CSs to capture its existing facilities. Key informant interviews were conducted in the office of Upazila Engineers to strengthen survey data. Findings This research found that the plan of CSs, quality of construction, capacity, facilities, entrance and exit, space allocation, management and policy were not capable enough to fulfill the needs and requirements of the community people. Due to lack of separate facilities, women and girls avoided shelters for fear of sexual and mental harassment in CSs, as they had experiences in the earlier events of cyclones. Insufficient facilities discourage community from using the shelters. Research limitations/implications Women and girls were shy to share their experience in CSs. The historical data were limited in the study area. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this research presents the actual community-based outcome. During CCRIP training program, the authors met 3,625 community people, and participatory discussions were made to explore the participants’ experiences and perceptions about the sustainable development of CSs. Practical implications South-Asian coastal zones are prone to natural, quasi-natural hazard and disasters, where shelters are required for protecting lives of community people during such disasters such as cyclones, storm surges, and floods. Therefore, this study can help in making sustainable development decisions in terms of constructing shelters in disaster-prone countries like Bangladesh. Social implications The outcomes of this investigation are useful for uplifting psychosocial status to protect lives during disasters such as cyclones, storm surges and floods and increase accessibility to shelters, and users will consider CSs as a social asset. In turn, the acceptability of CSs into community level are expected to be increased for combating against cyclones, storm surges, and floods. Originality/value This study introduces the bottom-up approach that refers to the community-based decision-making to identify the limitations and sustainable improvement of CSs. This research contributes to bridging the gaps between decision-makers and users of CSs. From the authors’ field experience, it can be said that this is the first fieldwork regarding the objectives.