Selected cities and the local partners

1. The port city of Chittagong in Bangladesh, has traditionally been a major centre for trade and commerce, and has a population of over 5 Million. The coastal areas of Chittagong are highly prone to natural disasters such as cyclone and tidal surge. The lead institute identified to implement the project in Chittagong is Bangladesh Disaster Preparedness Center (BDPC) which is a non-governmental organization engaged in a whole gamut of disaster management programs, e.g., research, advocacy, strategy formulation, piloting, information, educational and communication materials development, post disaster response planning and intervention, monitoring, evaluation, etc.

2. Hyderabad is the 2nd largest city in Sindh, 8th largest in Pakistan and Its population estimates are about 1,348,288. It is the regional headquarter of the district of Hyderabad and two of Pakistan's largest highways, the Indus Highway and the National Highway join at Hyderabad. This city is also vulnerable to floods, drought, extreme temperatures, heat waves and wind storms. The local partner, Aga Khan Planning and Building Services (AKPBSP) was established in 1980 as a part of Aga Khan Developmental Network in Pakistan. Disaster mitigation and management is one of the key program initiatives of AKPBSP with planned and ongoing Habitat Risk management initiatives in the northern areas, NWFP and Sindh Province.

3. Dagupan City with total population of about 150,000, is a sub-regional center which functions as a center for trade and commerce, finance, high level health and education services of Region 1 in Northern Luzon, Philippines.  Perennial flooding of low-lying coastal delta areas is a constraint to development due to frequent damage to public infrastructure, private property, agricultural crops, fishponds, and other economic activities. Centre for Disaster Preparedness (CDP) is one of the leading advocates of Community Based Disaster Risk Management in the Philippines. CDP employs different means to show and tell that community based disaster risk management works through the partnership of the community, support organizations and the different levels of government. They develop training materials, conduct trainings, develop public awareness materials, organize study tours, etc. to develop awareness and skills in disaster risk management among community leaders, development workers and even for those who work in government.

4. Kalutara is a medium size town in Sri Lanka with an urban population of over 100,000 and prone to floods and rain-induced landslides. The town has tremendous growth development potential due to its proximity to the capital city, the proposed international airport as well as a nearby rapidly developing satellite town. The lead institute, Sarvodaya Sramadana Society, is the largest National NGO network in Sri Lanka, in its 48 year old history has attempted to bring about sustainable development in rural, semi-urban and urban populations Its Development activities are implemented through a network of over 4,000 Sarvodaya Sramadana Societies covering almost 15,000 villages. Disciplines of Disaster Management, Environment and Ecology have been a core area of operations of Sarvodaya since its inception.

5. Da Nang, with an urban population of about 600,000, is a dynamic city of the Key Economic Zone in central Vietnam. Being located on the World Heritage Route, it also has tremendous tourism development potential in addition to the economic development potential. The city is highly vulnerable to urban floods and has experienced 2 major storms in the past 10 years. The lead institute, Centre for International studies and Cooperation is a major international NGO in the field of development and environment related work. It has been very active in the Central Region of Vietnam in providing assistance to the  government partners and communities in the coastal areas in assessing vulnerability and developing solutions for community-based disaster management and adaptation to climate change.