South Asia, with its dense population, rising temperatures and exposed geography, remains one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable regions – and Bangladesh is among the hardest hit. By 2030, nearly 90 per cent of the region’s population will face extreme heat, while close to one-quarter will be at risk of severe flooding. Rising water and soil salinity in coastal districts is already disrupting millions of lives in Bangladesh.
a new World Bank (WB) report, From Risk to Resilience: Helping People and Firms Adapt in South Asia, finds that households and private firms are bearing the bulk of climate adaptation costs. Awareness of climate risks is high: more than three-quarters of households and firms expect a major weather shock within the next decade. Some 63 per cent of firms and 80 per cent of households have taken steps to adapt, but most rely on basic, low-cost measures rather than advanced technologies or public infrastructure. But with governments facing tight fiscal constraints, the report stresses the need to enable far greater privatesector adaptation through comprehensive policy support