In May 2024, Cyclone Remal, a severe cyclonic storm, struck the western coast of Bangladesh, bringing heavy flooding and high winds that destroyed homes, infrastructure, farmland, and fisheries. Storm surges overwhelmed embankments, and seawater inundated homes, agricultural lands, and fisheries. Saltwater flooding also rendered some soil unfit for agriculture, contributing to the possibility of months of food insecurity and impact on livelihoods. The cyclone’s rapid intensification and changing path made evacuations challenging, and exacerbated existing food insecurity and health challenges, placing already vulnerable communities at risk. Start Network supported 91,600 people ahead of, during, and immediately after the cyclone.
Start Network is a global network of 130 local, national, and international humanitarian agencies dedicated to improving crisis response. Ahead of Cyclone Remal, Start Network and our members and partners in Bangladesh had been monitoring cyclone risks and working with local communities to enhance preparedness. Start Network’s Start Ready and Start Fund both responded to the cyclone, representing the very first event where three funding pathways (Start Ready, Start Fund Anticipation, and Start Fund Rapid Response) were all activated for the same crises event. The layered response provided needed support to vulnerable coastal communities.
Seasonal Preparedness and Anticipatory Action Through Start Ready
Start Ready is a unique financing mechanism that uses advanced planning so that funding can be rapidly released when needed most. Start Ready links a number of disaster risk financing (DRF) systems across countries. It pools funds which are available to be released to members to carry out contingency plans once forecasts have been made that predict a crisis and once the potential impact has been verified.
In Bangladesh, Start Ready supported seasonal readiness activities ahead of the cyclone through Start Ready national reserves funds. These funds were used to support the repair and construction of cyclone and flood shelters; support the repair and construction of WASH facilities such as latrines; develop household readiness through a variety of activities; contribute to community readiness through the formation and training of volunteers, partnership with community radio and awareness-raising sessions; repair of connecting roads and bridges and other activities to prepare for emergency rescue and evacuation; and support local communities to train and partner effectively. When Cyclone Remal hit Bangladesh, the ability of Start Network partners to quickly mobilise resources and coordinate with local governments made a significant difference in protecting homes and livelihoods.
Forty-eight hours before landfall, Start Ready’s cyclone system was triggered, and anticipatory actions were carried out across 36 unions in four high-risk districts: Satkhira, Khulna, Patuakhali, and Barguna. Direct assistance reached 30,000 people through early warning messaging, shelter preparedness kits, evacuation support, food and WASH assistance, livestock food, and cash transfers for at-risk households. Local volunteers and organisations played a key role in ensuring rapid and efficient mobilisation.
One learning from this activation was that the use of Mobile Money Transfers allowed for the rapid disbursement of funds even during weekends and holidays when traditional banking services were limited. This method of cash assistance enabled families to meet their urgent needs while also fostering a sense of agency in how they rebuilt their lives.
A Layered Approach to Response: Start Fund Filling the Gaps
As the cyclone made landfall, it became clear that the devastation would exceed the initial predictions made by Start Ready and other national forecasters. To compliment the ongoing work through Start Ready, the Start Fund was activated to respond to the increased need that corresponded to the cyclone’s unexpected intensity. The Start Fund is a funding mechanism designed by Start Network to enable NGOs to respond to under-the-radar, small to medium-scale crises in a timely and effective manner, disbursing funding within 72 hours of an alert being raised. The Start Fund is one of the fastest humanitarian mechanisms in the world.
A Start Fund Anticipation Alert was activated seventy-two hours ahead of the cyclone’s landfall, and reached around 6,600 people with early warning messages, advisory coordination with the Bangladesh Disaster Management Committee, evacuation for elderly people and people with disabilities in particular, and the provision of water, non-food items, tie-down-kits (shelter protection materials) to households to protect their homes and alternative lighting to enhance shelter readiness.
Within five days of the cyclone’s impact, a Start Fund Rapid Response alert was activated, providing multipurpose cash grants, hygiene and dignity kits, and food assistance to 55,000 people in affected communities. This Start Fund Rapid Response alert drew on community consultations to tailor projects to community needs, and allowed for innovation and community engagement.
Case Study: Assasuni Upazila
Assasuni Upazila, a coastal community in southwest Bangladesh, relies heavily on fisheries and agriculture. Before the cyclone’s landfall, local assessments warned that weak embankments could fail, leading to severe flooding that would submerge thousands of square kilometres of fish enclosures and 4,500 houses. Through Start Ready’s anticipatory activation, the community and the Union Disaster Management Committee mobilised resources and employed 75 local labourers through cash for work programming to reinforce embankments just before the cyclone struck. This Cash for Work intervention, which cost £733.57, protected an estimated £4.86 million in assets and livelihoods, demonstrating the cost-effectiveness of well-planned anticipatory action.
By empowering local communities to take action before the cyclone arrived, the response was not only effective but also fostered local ownership and resilience. This whole-of-society approach, engaging local government, non-government institutions, and grassroots organisations, proved to be instrumental in ensuring that interventions were tailored to the needs of the most vulnerable and underserved groups.
Impact of Layered Response
Start Network carried out an evaluation to understand how our layered response could teach us about how to improve outcomes for affected communities, ensure operational good practices and challenges, and to better understand the cost savings and effectiveness of different kinds of response. One of the most significant outcomes was the cost-effectiveness of early action, with the finding that for 1 USD invested through Start Ready, Start Network could save 14.88 USD worth of livelihood income and 7.5 USD worth of assets damaged. Strengthening community assets before the cyclone hit meant that families were able to rebuild more quickly, reducing the long-term impacts of the disaster. However, while early interventions were cost effective and enabled people to prepare, post-disaster support provided greatly needed recovery support, especially in areas that were not covered through anticipatory action because the full scope of the cyclone’s impact had not been forecast. During the critical recovery phase, multi-purpose cash and in-kind support provided highly effective tools for community members to rebuild their lives. The rapid mobilisation of resources not only saved lives but also prevented prolonged work disruptions and minimised the psychological strain of disaster recovery.
The Cyclone Remal response in Bangladesh exemplified the value of integrating anticipatory action with emergency response. By layering Start Ready’s pre-emptive measures with Start Fund’s rapid response, communities were better equipped to withstand and recover from climate-induced shocks. The ability to quickly transition from early preparedness to immediate response helped mitigate the worst effects of the cyclone and allowed for a more effective recovery.
The effectiveness of Start Network’s approach demonstrates the importance of pre-crisis investments in protecting vulnerable populations and ensuring cost-effective, timely humanitarian interventions. We will continue to respond, ensuring that the needs of vulnerable communities in Bangladesh and beyond are met.
