Mapping Climate Sensitive Zoonotic Diseases in Bangladesh
VetEffecT together with Spatial EpiLab and iccdr,b was awarded the Climate Sensitive Zoonotic Diseases in Bangladesh project of the WorldBank.
Climate change, environmental degradation and biodiversity loss are the biggest threat to mankind of today. The devastating direct effects are increasingly evident from floods, droughts, and changing monsoon patterns that have become less predictable than before, with high risk for dramatic consequences for humans, environment and wildlife, and society. Also effects on gender vulnerability are at stake. Bangladesh ranks high as vulnerable country to climate change: it ranked sixth on Global Climate Risk Index 2017, but low on readiness level for climate change, meaning that while it is highly vulnerable, it is not ready to prevent or reduce climate change effects.
It is with this perspective that this project aims to provide a prioritisation list of climate sensitive zoonotic diseases for Bangladesh, and to identify high-risk areas for the top five zoonotic diseases based on key risk factors, assess the impact of climate changes in the various regions in the country, and develop spatial suitability maps, as well as train national experts in risk assessment and risk mapping methodologies. The final goal will be to enhance national capacity for risk assessment and prioritization methodologies.
