Bangladesh Bits
Letter 29. November 2012
Dipty Linda &
James Pender
Advisors with The Church
of Bangladesh Social
Development Programme
St. Andrew’s Church
54/1 Barobag
Mirpur-2,
Dhaka 1216
BANGLADESH
Dear Friends
Since arriving in CBSDP Central Office one of my tasks has been checking, editing
and modifying reports before they go to the organisations that support us; our
development partners. One of the documents that I recently helped finalise was the
annual report for Tearfund from our project office in Jobarpar in the south of
Bangladesh. The project there named ‘Mobilising the Church in responding to the
threats posed by Climate Change’ is very close to my heart as I helped make the
initial partnership with Tearfund, took part in participatory meetings with the local
community that moulded its shape, helped design it, have monitored it and have
continued to support it in various ways. It is in many ways the fruit of the new focus
on climate change adaptation by the Church of Bangladesh that I have spearheaded.
The working area of the Mobilising the Church in responding to the threats posed by
Climate Change project takes in 4 districts: Faridpur, Gopalganj, Barisal and
Bagerhat. All are situated within the floodplains of the Ganges/Padma or
Brahmaputra/Jamuna rivers which overflow their banks annually. In addition much
of Gopalganj and Barisal Districts are made up of seasonally flooded wetlands known
as Beels, while saltwater due to the combined effects of sea level rise, cyclones and
environmental degradation due to shrimp farming has made much of the farmland of
Bagerhat District too salty for rice, vegetables or most other crops.
If you thought this was enough?
When we talked to some of the
communities (16 villages) for
the Environmental Assessment
we also learnt that weather
patterns were shifting resulting
in the farmers delaying their
planting by 1-2 months as a
result of climate change and in
addition to normal annual
flooding, disasters that villagers
Suagram Church of Bangladesh School/ Flood Shelter
had faced in the last 10 years
included: 2 cyclones which just in the 16 villages we surveyed killed 223 people and
2502 livestock; a severe hail storm which was reported to have killed 100 people and
930 livestock in 4 villages; 4 very severe (lives lost) floods such as in 2004 when I
first arrived in Bangladesh when 60% of the country went under water, and 4 serious
(no human lives lost) floods; 1 very severe and 2 serious droughts; and one plague of
rats that decimated crops.
These districts are very disaster prone and it is predicted that due to climate change
these disasters are likely to become more frequent and more severe. Much aid money
has come to these districts in the past for relief and rehabilitation work following
flood and cyclone caused disasters. However,this has led to an unhealthy donor
dependency with local villagers declaring one year where no ‘natural disasters’
occurred as being a different kind of ‘disaster’ for them as there was no relief or aid to
help support their very poor families. In addition like many churches around the
world those in Jobarpar Deanery had become focussed on committee meetings, clergy
and services, making them rather insular/inward looking.
Therefore in discussions with my colleagues within CBSDP and at Tearfund we
decided that firstly we should ‘help the communities in the area to help themselves’
and secondly that there could be no better way to do that than through the church
whose congregations would in the process be reminded that Jesus calls us to love our
neighbour and to share the Gospel to those around us, not to keep the ‘Good News’
caged up ‘in church’.
Therefore when I visited earlier this
year I was delighted to see a church
more engaged with the people and
issues outside their buildings. All
the churches in the deanery have
now started village Disaster
Management Committees and I was
privileged to join the members at
Dhamshar village for tea, snacks and
some discussions. I was pleased to
see that the local church minister was
the Chairman of the Committee and
that a good number of church members
were represented on it as well as Hindu
With the Dhamshar Disaster Management
Committee (Md. Dudu Mia with the ginger hair)
and Muslim villagers. There was also with a good cross section of the community
represented ranging from farmers, to students, a former freedom fighter, and
community nurse. The committee has formed different teams the: warning team,
shelter team, medical team and rescue team which will all have different roles in
assisting the community in the event of a flood, cyclones or other disaster that
periodically hit the area, as well as work to strengthen the communities resilience and
arrange preventative measures that will minimise damage and loss of life, like
clearing drainage ditches.
As I have recently come back from the Lausanne Consultation of Creation Care and
the Gospel, where the focus was on encouraging the worldwide church to make care
for the natural world God has created a central part of its life and worship, it was also
good to find out that the church had already had sermons on care for the
environment/climate change in Dhamshar village as well as in other places where the
church has voluntary ‘animators’ as part of this project. Md. Duda Mia an
enthusiastic member of the committee and former freedom fighter in Bangladesh’s
war of independence had even made sure that the issues of disaster preparedness,
climate change and creation care had even been discussed at the local mosque, as well
as trying to re-energise the government Sub-District Disaster Management Committee
on which he also sits!
Meanwhile in another village,
Kandi, St. Luke’s Church had got
volunteers from its church as well
Hindu neighbours from the village
to culitivate land around the church
building that had previously been
bare ground and turn it into tree
nursery during the summer and a
vegetable garden in the dryer
winter. The trees were then sold at
cost price (less than 2 pence),
instead of 15-20 pence which they
The Minister at Kandi with the church vegetable garden
would cost to buy at the local
market, as a service to the local community. Vegetables that had just been planted at
the time of my visit were likewise going to be sold very cheaply to the poor villagers
of the locality.
Other highlights were visits to: the Oichermat Girls and
Boys Hostels that now have solar panels that give light
enabling the children to study in the evening, a path
raised above flood levels allowing children to walk to
school in the rainy season, a deep tubewell giving
arsenic safe and less salty water to the surrounding
homes, toilets in flood shelters repaired, as well as
‘floating gardens’ (rafts of water hyacinth covered by
mulch) on which rice seedlings or vegetables can be
cultivated and ‘hanging gardens’ (vegetables on a
trellis) which allow foodstuffs to be cultivated in a way
that are safe from being destroyed by flooding.
Raised footpath to the school
It was encouraging to see how communities
were being assisted to be more resilient in the
face of recurrent disasters and the threat of
climate change, but best of all was to see that
the local church congregations were truly
becoming salt and light in their villages, taking
Jesus’ call to bring ‘good news to the poor’ to
new and exciting levels.
Hanging vegetable gardens on trellises
Weblink…
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Lausanne Consultation on Creation Care & the Gospel Press Release:
http://www.lausanne.org/en/about/news-releases/1882-global-gathering-of-creation-care-leaders-held-injamaica.html?device=desktop
Thank God…
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That God has given guidance for our future and that James starts a new ministry as ‘Programmes &
Advocacy Officer-Asia’ with the Leprosy Mission, England and Wales in February 2013.
For James’ opportunity to participate in the Lausanne Consultation on Creation Care and the Gospel with
leading theologians, scientists and creation care practitioners from 26 countries, in Jamaica earlier this
month.
For the work of the Mobilising the Church in responding to the threats posed by Climate Change Project
in southern Bangladesh.
Please pray…
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Pray that Dipti Linda would receive a UK ‘Settlement Visa’ quickly and without hassle
Pray for our family as we relocate to the UK during December/January
That we would find friends, a place to stay and a supportive church in Peterborough where we will be
based
Pray for the overcoming of culture shock for Dipti Linda and reverse culture shock for James
Pray that little Sophia would adjust well to life in a different climate and country
Pray that the Lord would keep watch on Linda’s mum who is quite frail in good health and that Linda
has God’s peace.
That God would protect Linda’s father and neighbours (who are vulnerable being tribal & Christian
minorities) from criminals
For our colleagues in the CBSDP and friends in the Church of Bangladesh, that God would supply his
wisdom and blessing to their life and work.
James & Linda