Asia Resilient Cities Project Announces Khulna, Bangladesh as Partner City

The Asia Resilient Cities (ARC) Project is proud to partner with the Khulna City Corporation, the mayor’s office, and residents to mitigate cross-cutting urban development challenges. The USAID-funded project, led by JSI, will promote sustainable urban growth; support resilient, low-carbon urban infrastructure; and integrate climate change and environmental considerations into urban approaches. ARC will also connect city residents, governments, and other stakeholders to create relationships that will continue past the end of this project.

Khulna is the third-largest city and economic center in Bangladesh, and the capital of Khulna Division. The city, home to just under 1 million people, is in the country’s southwest. It sits on the Rupsha and Bhairab Rivers and has one of the country’s oldest and busiest river ports. This coastal nature makes the city vulnerable to floods caused by rising sea levels.

ARC will convene and work with the Khulna City government, academia, civil society organizations, and residents. This diverse group will co-design activities that sustain livable environments in the face of climate change. Throughout its partnership with the city, ARC will employ a variety of tools to support a systems approach to sustainable urban development, and involve people who are often excluded from urban planning.

City residents are ARC’s biggest resource for making change. ARC will go beyond simply including residents in the conversation by collaborating to drive the city agenda, change the economy, and advocate for what their communities need. The project will also build human resources capacity in city government, and actively engage the business community and other development projects.

For more information, visit the Asia Resilient Cities webpage or contact Amanda Pomeroy-Stevens, ARC Project Director, at amanda_pomeroy@jsi.com.

Asia Resilient Cities (ARC) is a five-year cooperative agreement funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) under Agreement No. 7200AA22CA00011, beginning September 23, 2022. ARC is implemented by JSI Research & Training Institute, Inc. (JSI) with partners BRAC, DevTech Systems, Inc., and ICF. This project is made possible by the generous support of the American people through USAID. USAID administers the U.S. foreign assistance program, providing economic and humanitarian assistance in more than 80 countries worldwide.