PROJECT INFORMATION DOCUMENT (PID)
CONCEPT STAGE
Report No.: AB5179
Project Name
Region
Sector
Project ID
Borrower(s)
Implementing Agency
Environment Category
Date PID Prepared
Estimated Date of
Appraisal Authorization
Estimated Date of Board
Approval
I.
Bangladesh Rivers Information and Conservation (BRIC) Program
South Asia
Water Resources Management (40%); Institutions and Governance
(25%); General Agriculture, Fishing and Forestry (10%); Rural Services
and Infrastructure (25%)
P117206
Government of Bangladesh
Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB)
WAPDA Building, Motijheel Commercial Area
Dhaka -1000, Bangladesh
[X] A [] B [ ] C [ ] FI [ ] TBD (to be determined)
March 03, 2010
October 2010
March 2011
Key Development Issues
1.
A country shaped by rivers. Water plays a significant role in every aspect of Bangladesh’s
economy. Bangladesh’s 310 rivers constitute the lifeline for this densely populated landmass (1,200
inhabitants per square kilometers). Around 1,200 km3 of freshwater flows through these rivers every
year. During the monsoon, up to 70% of Bangladesh’s mostly low-lying delta is highly prone to flooding.
Yet behind this apparent abundance hides tremendous variability.
2.
From abundance to scarcity: managing spatial and temporal variability. Although
Bangladesh receives considerable freshwater, over 95% of all flows are concentrated in just three rivers the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna. Most of the water flows within just 5 months of the year, with
limited infrastructure and space to store the water for the long dry season. These mighty rivers also carry
heavy silt loads which clog distributaries and reduce fresh water availability during the dry-season. Both
surface and groundwater water availability are further reduced through declining water quality in many
areas. In the coastal belt, low flows and storm surges are resulting in increased saline intrusion, whilst
urbanized areas are increasingly contaminated with anthropogenic pollution sources from domestic and
industrial waste. Combined, this hydrological variability presents considerable water resource
management challenges, which will only be exacerbated by climate change.
3.
Bringing Bangladesh’s hydrology network into the digital era. Bangladesh’s existing
hydrology network is ill-equipped to manage one of the most complex river systems in the world. Most
of its hydrology network was established back in 1960-1980, with support from development partners.
There has been little upgrading since. The overall network remains manually operated with old and
poorly maintained equipment. This limits the ability of the BWDB to effectively provide reliable
information to various stakeholders. To meet the tremendous challenge of managing its rivers in the 21 st
century, the existing hydrological network needs to be entirely modernized, optimized and automated in
an integrated platform which directly builds onto the Government’s Digital Bangladesh agenda.
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4.
Improving data collection and management to better support a comprehensive national
water information system. There are currently more than 35 institutions across Bangladesh dealing with
data collection and monitoring. This makes it harder to process and disseminate relevant, accurate and
just-in-time information to support the needs of decision-makers and other users alike. The mandating by
the Government of Bangladesh of the Water Resources Planning Organization (WARPO) as custodians of
a National Water Resources Database is an important first step. However, the primary data inputted into
the database are not always reliable and suffer from extensive collection and processing time-lags. Since
a large proportion of the dynamic time-series water data available to the national water resources database
is collected by BWDB, the modernization of BWDB’s hydrology data collection and processing will in
itself be an important first step in enhancing the quality of the national database.
5.
Water challenges impact heavily on the development agenda particularly in the Southwest
Region. Bangladesh’s economy is highly dependent on, and vulnerable to, the country’s extremely
variable water resources. The silting up of the Gorai River, the last remaining major channel in the
Southwest, underscores the consequences of river sedimentation - with the livelihoods of 40 million
people under threat due to lack of fresh and reliable water. Yet the Gorai proposed activities are not new
in terms of the scope of water resources development in Bangladesh. Substantive feasibility studies were
carried out ten years ago. However, those activities were not implemented due to divergence between the
incoming and outgoing ruling parties, notably regarding the relative merits between the restoration of the
Gorai and the construction of a full-fledged Ganges Barrage. Following this impasse, the situation in the
Gorai and its dependant areas have worsened with increased sedimentation and salinity, threatening the
living conditions of people, reducing economic opportunity and increasing the ecosystem fragility
particularly on the sundarbans. Indeed, feasibility studies have shown that dry season low flows can be
significantly increased through a sequenced intervention initiated with capital dredging works; followed
by the construction of flow diversion and erosion protection structures at the mouth of the Gorai, and
finally supplemented by continued (lower-level) maintenance dredging. There is now a renewed interest
in government for restoring the Gorai, which offers a window of opportunity for action. Indeed, sustained
and widespread benefits to the local people and ecosystems can be achieved by embedding these
workswithin a broader long-term integrated basin planning framework, while maximizing the linkages
and synergies with other regional initiatives in the Southwest, notably the construction of the Padma
Bridge which will provide a direct road link from this cut-off region to the capital Dhaka. To achieve
this, sound institutions overseeing the Gorai Basin will be necessary to support this integrated planning
process, and will need to be gradually strengthened through a phased and long-term commitment.
6.
Strengthening water institutions for better water resources management.
Better
infrastructure and hydrological equipment alone will not adequately respond to Bangladesh’s
considerable water resources management challenges unless the appropriate financial, human resources,
accountability and decision-making systems are strengthened. Actions to enhance the incentives and
performance of water institutions, including the identification of institutional shortcomings within line
agencies, notably the BWDB, and the removal of existing barriers for their effective performance, would
be much needed. Human resources and capacity gaps within the BWDB are a particular concern.
Around 50% of posts remain unfilled, a situation that will only be exacerbated by the current wave of
retiring staff. Adequate replacements are often unavailable, with young and talented engineers lacking
incentives to join and/or build careers as civil servants. A careful consideration of strategic staffing
options and incentives will be required to ensure that this emerging generation gap does not threaten the
effective management of Bangladesh’s water resources.
7.
Pursuing a parallel national and regional water resources management agenda. Given
Bangladesh’s situation as the lowest riparian country, occupying only 7% of the Ganges-BrahmaputraMeghna river basin and receiving water from 57 international rivers, it inevitably faces numerous
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challenges associated with the greater watershed beyond its borders. In the long-term, achieving
sustainable water resources management will require enhanced regional cooperation with riparian
countries. However, this must be balanced against critical short-term needs. The GoB is therefore
seeking to adopt a two pronged strategy; focused on short-term concrete actions at the national level
combined with on-going discussions with riparian countries bilaterally and through regional platforms
such as the Abu Dhabi Dialogue.
II.
Rationale for Bank Involvement
8.
The World Bank has a comparative advantage to help Bangladesh address the above challenges.
The Bank rationale is to support Bangladesh to better manage its water resources through three keys
developmental pillars namely institutions, information and investments. First, the institution pillar will
help Bangladesh rejuvenate its aging water resources institutions within the context of integrated water
resources management for the 21st century. This would involve strategic staffing and capacity building for
targeted institutions. Furthermore, this pillar will also include revamping some institutions by building
from inside to address the current water institution crisis and low performance. These activities will be
implemented in parallel to the second, information pillar which will support the improvement of water
resources information and associated digital systems. This will provide valuable data for water resources
planning and development and will increase Bangladesh readiness in the context of climate change
adaptation. In addition, it will also enhance preparedness for water extreme events (floods and droughts)
thus safeguarding both lives and damages to economic property. Finally, the third investment pillar will
address one of the most pressing problems of Bangladesh today by increasing freshwater availability in
the Gorai during the dry season. As the traditional water life-line for the Southwest region, the restoration
of the Gorai River will help improve key regional environmental and ecological services and functions,
including those of the Sundarbans mangrove forests. This in turns will have both positive economic and
social impacts on the overall Southwest Region.
9.
The Bank now has a unique comparative advantage to assist Bangladesh to better manage and
conserve its rivers. First, the political environment in Bangladesh has positively evolved towards
sustainably restoring rivers in the Southwest Region – and political risks associated with electoral cycles
are better factored into the proposed project design. Second, the Bank is actively engaged in identifying
new climate change adaptation strategies (notably through the Bangladesh PPCR) and can help support
the transfer of advanced technology and skills to better measure water-related impacts and develop
associated resilience strategies. Third, the Bank’s facilitation of the Abu Dhabi Dialogue, provides
Bangladesh with an opportunity to explore long-term solutions with its neighbors to better manage their
transboundary waters. Fourth, under the forthcoming Country Assistance Strategy (CAS) the Bank’s is
also supporting the development of the Southwest Region, for which the Gorai restoration and provision
of additional freshwater resources, plays an integral role. Finally the Bank has been active in supporting
South Asian countries in upgrading their hydrology networks (e.g. India Hydrodrolgy I & II, Sri Lanka
and Afghanistan). The project will build upon these on-going experiences ensuring progressive
harmonization in data collection and monitoring within a potential framework of regional cooperation.
Therefore, the project design takes into account the short, medium and long term approach to address
boarder water resources management issues within Bangladesh.
10.
The Bank has been one of Bangladesh’s main partners in water resources and environmental
management over the past decades. Efforts in water resources management have primarily focused on
preventing the damaging impact of floods and in improving water resources management for agriculture
through better irrigation. Lessons learnt through several decades of engagement in the water sector in
Bangladesh show that institutional fragmentation, decreasing capacity and lack of clear focus on specific
water issues are the main challenges. Despite obvious progress on water infrastructure development and
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prevention of water related hazards, the sector is still constrained by a number of factors among which the
absence of a regional cooperation framework, politicization of priorities, inadequate policies for operation
and maintenance of existing water assets, and above all declining capacity of the lead water institution at
both the national and local level. While the strengthening of water institutions remains an objective for
many projects, to date, these have not achieved the results needed to address the root causes of the
problem. An integrated approach that establishes a comprehensive institutional framework with clear
arrangements for sustainable management of water resources is therefore required. The project will build
upon these recent experiences, which have highlighted the need for incremental, targeted, pragmatic
interventions, to further enhance capacity and stimulate changes in critical new areas such as data
collection and monitoring, and integrated river basin management. The proposed project is fully
consistent with both the 2006-2009 and the forthcoming Bangladesh Country Assistance Strategy which
underscore the importance of water resources management, disaster mitigation, and climate change. It
also builds upon the 2006 Country Environmental Analysis which emphasized environmental
preservation and conservation. Furthermore, the project is aligned with GoB planning instruments notably
the National Water Policy, National Water Management Plan and the draft Five Year Plan (2011-2015)
all of which emphasize a more comprehensive and integrated water resources management approach.
Finally, the project is consistent with GoB commitment to address water resources management for the
welfare of the nation and reflected in the present Government’s manifesto.
Complementarities with on-going Bank projects and lessons learnt. The BRIC project complements
and follows on from existing work carried out under the Water Management Improvement Project
(WMIP) in two specific ways. First, while both projects seek to strengthen the provision and
dissemination of reliable water resources management information, the WMIP efforts focus on the
National Water Resources Database (NWRD) under WARPO, whereas the BRIC project will help
enhance the quality and relevance of the primary data feeding into it (since BWDB accounts for 80% of
the dynamic water datasets received). Second, the WMIP will play a critical role in translating the
increased dry-season water flows into the Gorai and the Ganges dependant areas (GDA) provided under
the BRIC project, into actual benefits for people through its local community livelihood outreach
programs. Furthermore, the BRIC project will also complement efforts being initiated under the Dhaka
Environment and Water Program Project, particularly on issues related to water quality and monitoring
with the modernization of the groundwater network. The proposed project will complement the Bank's
regional water resources engagement, especially the proposed National Ganga River Basin project and
Northeast India Multistates Water Resources Project recently requested by the Government of India since
Bangladesh is both the delta of the Ganges River and the most accessible maritime gateway for Northeast
India. It also fits with the overall regional strategy being developed under the Ganges Strategic Basin
Assessment, and will complement activities to be initiated under the Climate Change Multi-donor Trust
Funds; the proposed Sundarbans NTLA in India and Bangladesh; the Southwest Region re-engagement
and several on-going and proposed hydrology network up-grading projects in other SAR countries
including India and Nepal. Moreover, the proposed project builds upon lessons from similar projects
within the Region and across the world in two ways: (i) technical specifications and standardization of
equipments in designing a modern and operational hydrology network. This project will build upon
experiences from the hydrology I-II in India as well as those underway in Afghanistan and Sri Lanka to
ensure consistent procurement packages of equipments; and (ii) state of the art expertise for deltaic
environments. Capacity building and adequate skills are required to deal with complex issues such as
sediment management and operation of infrastructure in deltaic zones such as Bangladesh. The project
will consolidate the existing partnership with the Netherlands in this particular case and explore further
best practices such as those implemented in the Mississippi Delta.
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III.
Proposed Objective
11.
The proposed project development objective (PDO) is to help the Government of Bangladesh
modernize its hydrology network and restore the productivity of the Gorai river systems. The PDO will
be achieved through the five following intermediate outcomes:





IV.
Installation of modern tools and instruments to better monitor information and collect real time
data on its rivers network;
Consolidation of state-of-the-art knowledge on water resources information, planning and
development through training and capacity building programs for targeted water resources
institutions (Gorai River and Hydrology Units);
Effective increase of flow availability on the Gorai through construction of required water
infrastructure (flow divider, Gorai guide bundh and river training works);
Increase of activities through a restored Gorai river system thus bringing potential benefits to
stakeholders and contributing to the revitalization of the Southwest region;
Operational flood early warning system with an effective dissemination of information to
stakeholders leading to saving of lives and properties.
Preliminary Description
12.
Developing a long term engagement. The identified priority actions will be framed around a long
term engagement to enhance water resources management and planning of Bangladesh’s rivers, with an
initial focus on the Southwest Region. The approach is phased, and focuses on three intertwined pillars:
Institutions, Information, and Investments.
13.
The proposed project is a 5 year Specific Investment Loan (SIL) with an overall estimated cost of
US$160 million. It should be noted that this SIL is only the first intervention within a broader 10-15 year
programmatic vision to strengthen Bangladesh’s water resources management systems within three above
mentioned pillars.
14.
Within the umbrella of this 5 year SIL, a two step approach is proposed for the project design.
Year one will focus on implementing key building blocks including: (i) the upgrading of the hydrological
network combined with the institutional capacity building of the hydrology units; (ii) finalization of the
detail design for the Gorai restoration associated with the establishment of the Gorai unit; (iii) Gorai River
conservation pilots building on the proposed environmental and social mitigation activities; (iv) initial
works in relation to the restoration of the Gorai river mouth. The second year of the project
implementation will then involve the financing of major river restoration works in the Gorai River. This
sequencing will ensure that, once the major works are ready to be financed, these are efficiently carried
out within a strong institutional framework, and long-term planning vision for sustainable operation and
maintenance, where the environmental, social and economic benefits of increased dry-season flows to the
Southwest can be maximized.
15.
The proposed components are detailed below.
Component 1. Modernization of the hydrology network (estimated cost US$40 million)
This component will support the information pillar and includes:

Modernization of the network design, data collection and data transmission (US$25 million). This
sub-component will support the rehabilitation, upgrading, and expansion of network stations, data
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collection and data transmission for rainfall, specific river sections and groundwater aquifers. Key
activities would include: (i) review of the information needs and an analysis of the current data sets;
(ii) expansion and consolidation of the national hydrology monitoring network (rainfall, surface water
and groundwater); (iii) installation of automated hydrometric and weather observing stations
(AHWOS); (iv) rehabilitation and upgrading of the overall groundwater network; (v) upgrading of
operation and maintenance systems; (vi) establishment of national workshops for repair and
maintenance; and (vii) ensuring adequate security of equipment and infrastructure.

Modernization and upgrading of data processing, storage and dissemination (USS15 million). This
sub-component will support a long-term process for effective data management across the country.
Key activities would consist of: (i) modernization of the data transmission system (telemetry,
satellites, radio, GRPS, IP networks etc.); (ii) upgrading data transmission procedures and
establishment of regional dispatching centers; (iii) enhancement of data storage, processing and
retrieval capacity and procedures; and (iv) provision for enhanced water quality analysis including
upgrading of laboratory equipment.
Component 2. Gorai River Restoration (US$98 million).
Consistent with the investment pillar, this component will focus on the following activities:

Gorai River conservation pilots (US$18 million). This sub-component will pilot initial activities
which provide quick and tangible benefits on the ground – based on the recommendation of the
updated environmental and social study of the Gorai restoration. The objective is to foster local
stakeholder ownership and involvement. It will also help maximize community benefits derived
from the increased flows during dry season, once the full Gorai River restoration works are
completed. The proposed interventions include: (i) the construction of small river training works;
(ii) slope stabilization through vegetation and aforestation; (iii) community training and restoration
of small channels, tributaries and fisheries; and (iv) identification and implementation of
recommended livelihood options.

Gorai River restoration works (US$80 million): The proposed activities include: (i) training works
at the Gorai mouth (flow divider and guide bund); (ii) river training works in the Gorai River (river
bank revetments and rehabilitation of existing groynes); and (iii) the restoration of distributaries of
the Gorai River.
Component 3. Institutional Water Resources Development (US$22 million)
This component will primarily support the institutional pillar with an emphasis on the following
activities:

Capacity building of BWDB hydrology unit and decentralized sub-divisions (US$5 million). The
proposed activities would be synchronized with the modernization of the hydrology network and
expansion of the flood early warning system. The activities consist of: (i) preparation and funding of
a comprehensive training program in parallel with the upgrading of the hydrology network and
telemetry systems; (ii) upgrading of the national hydrology training center; and (iii) training of
trainers for wider dissemination.

Support to the Gorai River Management Unit (US$5 million). This activity supports the
establishment of the Gorai River Management Unit as a specialized entity to ensure effective
management from a sub-basin approach with long term sustainability and adequate operation and
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maintenance of the Gorai system and its dependent areas. Activities would consist of: (i)
institutional provisions to enable the staffing of the Gorai River Unit under the BWDB; (ii) the
development of a model to explore options for a sustainable O&M financing framework for Gorai
investments; (iii) support to an independent panel of experts to guide the implementation of river
restoration activities, and mainstream wider water resource interventions required for basin wide
management and augmentation; ; and (iv) preparation of a dredging strategy for Bangladesh Rivers..

Expansion of the flood early warning and community awareness (US$7 million). This
subcomponent will scale up the nation-wide early warning system and improve the dissemination of
flood and erosion early warnings to grassroots communities. Key activities include: (i) expansion of
the Digital Elevation Model (DEM) to the coastal zone; (ii) improvement of flood forecasting and
warning services; (iii) consolidation and expansion of the flood early warning system using modern
and automated dissemination systems (iv) implementation of the BWDB national communication
action plan inclusive of comprehensive sensitization for flood warnings using mosque radio
transmitters; (v) translation and dissemination of early warning message in local languages; (vi)
development of feedback mechanism to assess community involvement and satisfaction..

Project oversight and monitoring (US$5 million). This subcomponent would support the following
activities: (i) project oversight at the highest level; (ii) monitoring, evaluation and auditing; (iii)
dissemination and exchange of best practices; (iv) audit; and (v) additional studies.
V.
Safeguard Policies that might apply
Safeguard Policies Triggered by the Project
Environmental Assessment (OP/BP 4.01)
Natural Habitats (OP/BP 4.04)
Pest Management (OP 4.09)
Physical Cultural Resources (OP/BP 4.11)
Involuntary Resettlement (OP/BP 4.12)
Indigenous Peoples ( OP/BP 4.10)
Forests (OP/BP 4.36)
Safety of Dams (OP/BP 4.37)
Projects in Disputed Areas (OP/BP 7.60)*
Projects on International Waterways (OP/BP 7.50)
Piloting the Use of Borrower Systems to Address Environmental
and Social Issues in Bank-Supported Projects (OP/BP 4.00)
VI.
Yes
[X]
[X]
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[X ]
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[X]
[X]
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[X ]
No
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[X]
[X]
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[X]
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[X]
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[X]
Tentative Financing
Source:
Borrower/Recipient
IDA
($m.)
Total
VII.
TBD
160
160
Contact Point
*
By supporting the proposed project, the Bank does not intend to prejudice the final determination of the parties' claims on the
disputed areas
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Contact:
Title:
Tel:
Fax:
Email:
Location:
Ousmane Dione
Lead Water Resources Specialist
+1 (202) 473-5574
+1 (202) 614-1074
odione@worldbank.org
1818 H Street NW, Washington DC, 20433
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