01.17.23

Winter takes its toll on Bangladesh 

  News

In the thick of winter, a cold wave is sweeping over Bangladesh. With many cities recording record-low temperatures, harsh winds and heavy fog daily, day-to-day life in Bangladesh has become more unbearable.

Suspended public transport, no warm clothing and overcrowded hospitals are now the norms this winter for the people of Bangladesh. The struggle for survival has ramped up, especially for the nation’s most vulnerable.

Bangladesh’s poor worst hit

The harsh winter weather has caused immense strife for low-income families, forcing them to stay indoors and forgo their main source of income.

Stories of mothers and fathers unable to leave home for work in the morning are not uncommon. Severe weather conditions have suspended ferry operations on vital river routes, such as the Daulatdia–Paturia and Aricha–Kazirhat. Hours of delays are causing long tailbacks on the highways connected by these river routes, pushing thousands of people out of work and struggling to care for their children and elderly.

Photo: Children in Bangladesh are one of the vulnerable groups most at risk this winter.

For those that can work, the cold weather and biting winds leave daily wage earners and farmers in the northern districts suffering, as a vast majority don’t have the means to buy fuel or adequate clothing to keep warm during winter.

With most of the population unable or struggling to work due to the intense winter weather, poor communities in Bangladesh face an increased risk of contracting illnesses and diseases with little to no support.

Winter illnesses are rapidly spreading among the population

As the winter weather conditions worsen, patients suffering from cold, flu, and other winter illness are overwhelming Bangladeshi hospitals.

Many medical centres are over capacity, as groups of hundreds around Bangladesh are in desperate need of medical aid. Numbers of diarrhoea, spread by the rotavirus, in particular, are high, especially among children, who are also most susceptible to cold-related diseases.

The lack of access to health facilities and medical knowledge in Bangladesh is also leaving countless vulnerable families in the dark. Many parents are also unknowing of how severe cold-related diseases can be and are bringing their children to the hospital only after the illness intensifies and reaches its last phase. If this continues, this winter could put Bangladesh’s future at further risk.

Your support can give hope to struggling communities

As food and energy prices continue to rise, more and more people in countries like Bangladesh are pushed into poverty. In winter especially, when the plummeting temperatures and harsh weather leave poor families with little sustenance or shelter, the world’s most vulnerable face an even greater struggle for survival.

Photo: Islamic Relief is delivering winter clothes and other essentials for warmth to vulnerable communities in Bangladesh this Winter Appeal

In this fight for families to feed and keep their loved ones warm and safe, Islamic Relief Australia is on the ground delivering vital survival items, such as warm clothes, blankets, and heaters, to vulnerable communities.

This winter, with more people than ever before in desperate need, Islamic Relief is determined to reach and save thousands more individuals in over 17 countries with our Winter Appeal, including the people of Bangladesh. 

Keep someone warm this winter appeal

This winter, you can be a lifeline for thousands of families. Give to our Winter Appeal and save lives.


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