Climate Vulnerability of Elderly People in Coastal Bangladesh: Issues of Social Security and Internal Migration to Cities

Abstract

Climate vulnerability among ageing populations remains an acute yet under-studied dimension of the environmental crisis in the Global South. This study examines the climate vulnerabilities, adaptation strategies, and resilience of older adults along Bangladesh’s coast, and offers preliminary insight into the experiences of families who have subsequently migrated to Dhaka. Using a qualitative approach, the study draws primarily on in-depth interviews, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions with thirty older adults and community leaders in Shyamnagar Upazila, Satkhira District, supplemented by two exploratory focus group discussions with migrant families in Dhaka’s slums. The findings show that older adults in the coastal study site remain highly vulnerable, with limited means of evacuation, age-related health challenges, and growing isolation as younger family members migrate to urban areas. Existing government and NGO support, including the Old Age Allowance, meets immediate financial needs but rarely extends to disaster recovery, housing modification, or psychosocial support. In the absence of formalised disaster management systems, older adults instead rely on traditional knowledge and informal networks, such as mosque committees and youth volunteers, to cope with climate shocks. The exploratory migrant findings suggest that families who move to Dhaka exchange rural climate risks for urban ones, including poor sanitation and precarious informal employment in city slums, though this strand of the data is limited and warrants dedicated future study. The study concludes that age-specific adaptation and social protection measures, grounded in participants’ own accounts rather than general prescription, are needed to secure a more equitable and resilient future for Bangladesh’s coastal ageing population.