Your Kingdom come

Bangladesh

Amina Begum became an environmental refugee after her family lost their land to river erosion. They have moved three times as the river bank has gradually been eaten away. She and her family have now resettled 1.5 kilometres away from the river, but they know it is only a matter of time before they see their land swallowed up again.

Amina is a member of the local women’s forum, organised by the Christian Commission for Development in Bangladesh (CCDB), supported by Christian Aid. Through the forum’s schemes to help people make a living, Amina hopes to earn a reasonable income and save some extra money so that one day her family will be able to buy a safer piece of land, far away from the danger zone.

More than 200 rivers flow through Bangladesh and 17 million people live less than one metre above sea level. Even though Bangladesh is responsible for only one per cent of the world’s carbon emissions, it will be one of the countries worst hit, as it is vulnerable to floods, river erosion, cyclones and drought. CCDB and Christian Aid’s other partners there are helping people to adapt to the changes and improve their ability to cope with the predicted increases in extremes of weather.

‘I got a CCDB loan to buy two goats,’ says Amina. ‘They have had two kids. We’ll probably sell the goats and invest the money in some other income-generating activities. Before I joined CCDB, I had no money to save, but now I have managed to save something at least. I will have something to fall back on.’