Water Bank: Women-Led Climate Solution Turning Rain into Resilience

Md. Tawhidur Rahaman (ELP 2024) | Technical Expert at CWIS FSM Support Cell, Department of Public Health Engineering (DPHE), Bangladesh

October 16, 2025

[Photo credit: O. CREEDS]

When I first stepped into Chandpai Union of Mongla, in the coastal district of Bagerhat in Bangladesh, the salty breeze carried both beauty and hardship. The horizon stretched endlessly, painted by the tidal rhythm of the Passur River and the distant hum of the Sundarbans. Yet, beneath this stunning landscape, an invisible struggle unfolds every day the fight for a glass of safe drinking water.

For many of us, turning on a tap is an effortless act. But here, in one of the most climate-vulnerable corners of Bangladesh, freshwater has become a luxury. Rising sea levels, saltwater intrusion, and frequent cyclones have turned ponds and shallow aquifers brackish. During the dry months, the ground cracks open, and rain-fed ponds often turn brackish as salt from nearby rivers and saline soils seeps in, making the water unsafe to drink

In this struggle, a remarkable idea has emerged — a Water Bank.

[Photo credit: blog author Md Tawhidur Rahaman]

Just as we deposit money into a bank for future security, here, communities “deposit” rainwater during the monsoon storing it carefully in large tanks to use when the skies go dry. In South Kainmari village in Chandpai, six tanks, each holding 30,000 liters, have been built to serve around 50 families. The system is managed by the Passur Women Group a local collective of women who have become guardians of water, hope, and community resilience.

Each morning, women gather by the water bank with small containers. They collect their daily 20 liters of fresh water — enough for a family of four to drink, cook, and survive the scorching dry season. The women keep records, collecting a small fee for maintenance. It’s not much, but it’s their system self-organized, accountable, and built on trust.

When I visited, one of the women, Aklima, smiled and said,

“We used to walk hours to find freshwater. Now, this tank is our bank — our savings for survival.” Her words stayed with me.

[Photo credit: blog author Md Tawhidur Rahaman]

The Water Bank is more than a technical solution it’s a social innovation rooted in the spirit of community. It turns rainfall, which once ran off into salty rivers, into a shared asset. It empowers women as decision-makers. It provides dignity to families who no longer have to drink saline or contaminated water.

But challenges remain. The current filtration typically 0.5 micron cannot remove dissolved heavy metals or microscopic pathogens that might enter the system. To make this truly safe and sustainable, we need to integrate reverse osmosis treatment, mineral balancing, and real-time quality monitoring perhaps powered by AI-based sensors.

Scaling this effort is not only possible but necessary. Across Bangladesh’s 19 coastal districts, millions face similar water stress. If each vulnerable village could establish its own Water Bank with technical support for purification, training for women’s groups, and modest local funding we could transform a fragile coastline into a mosaic of resilience.

This model also aligns with the national climate adaptation goals: community-led, low-cost, and nature-based. Organizations like BRAC with the support of Danish International Development Agency are already expanding such systems. But the future of this effort lies in local ownership.

When communities —especially women — lead adaptation, the change lasts.

As climate change continues to redraw the map of coastal Bangladesh, the Water Bank stands as a quiet but powerful reminder: resilience begins from the ground up, in the hands of those who have the least, but give the most.

Next time the rain pours over the delta, those drops won’t just fall and disappear — they’ll be deposited into hope.

[Blog preview photo credit: O. CREEDS ]

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