New report: Bangladesh Water Security National Level Analysis

Bangladesh’s economy faces major threats from the climate impacts, particularly on water, including threats to the country’s world-beating textile and rice sectors. Bangladesh is emerging as one of the fastest growing economies with Real GDP growth reaching 7.1% in 2022 and 6% in 2023. However if action is not taken there may be considerable loss to agricultural GDP due to climate variability and extreme events by 2050 and cropland may shrink by 18% in Southern coastal Bangladesh and 6.5% nationally by 2040.

Our new report dives deep into Bangladesh’s water security challenges, making the case for urgent action to unlock the necessary financing and implement the solutions needed to secure Bangladesh's water future.

Key findings from the report include:

• Bangladesh will require an additional 14.92 billion cubic meters of water annually by 2040 to meet rising demands - a 38% increase over 2020 levels.

• The agricultural sector will account for 64% of total water demand in 2040, with the Rangpur and Rajshahi divisions facing the highest future irrigation needs.

• Industrial water demand is projected to increase 360% by 2042, driven largely by growth in the garments and textile industries.

• Bangladesh faces an annual climate finance investment gap of $27-35 billion to fund critical adaptation projects, such as surface water treatment to boost water supplies and take the pressure off groundwater,  and measures to improve industrial water use efficiency, outlined in the Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100 and National Adaptation Plan.

The report identifies 15 potential high-impact interventions to transform the way in which Bangladesh manages its water sources, preventing the overuse of scarce resources, reducing the pollution of resources that are used, and ensuring clean water is available all year round to meet the needs of all Bangladeshi citizens.