Published: 11:58 PM, 15 July 2026
Committed to working with Bangladesh: UK
British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Sarah Cooke on Wednesday said the United Kingdom (UK) remains committed to working with Bangladesh to help communities prepare for, respond to and recover from natural disasters, while strengthening long-term climate resilience.
The UK government is providing £355,000 or approximately Tk 5.7 crore in life-saving humanitarian assistance to support more than 55,000 people affected by flooding in Southeast and Northeast Bangladesh, UNB reports.
British High Commissioner Sarah Cooke said the UK stands with the people of Bangladesh affected by these devastating floods.
"This humanitarian assistance will help provide vital support to more than 55,000 people across some of the worst affected areas in the southeast and northeast Bangladesh," she said.
Managed by Start Network and delivered through national and local NGOs, the UK contribution will provide affected communities with cash assistance, food, and hygiene supplies across six of the worst affected districts: Cox's Bazar, Bandarban, Rangamati, Chittagong, Khagrachari and Moulvibazar.
This support builds on £245,000 (approximately Tk 3.9 crore) in emergency funding released in May 2026 for communities affected by the earlier flooding in the Sylhet region.
It brings the UK government's total disaster response support in Bangladesh this year to over £600,000 (approximately Tk 9.6 crore, alongside ongoing UK support to strengthen Bangladesh's climate resilience, said the British High Commission in Dhaka.
The UK is also supporting flood-affected communities through its contributions to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies' Disaster Response Emergency Fund (DREF).
Through DREF, a total of £438,348 (approximately Tk 7.2 crore) is being provided to assist people affected by flooding across 10 of the worst-affected districts in Northeast and Southeast Bangladesh.
Additionally, through the UK-Bangladesh hydro-met partnership, the UK has supported the integration of UK Met Office data into national forecasting systems, improving the accuracy and lead time of flood warnings across Bangladesh.
This has enabled earlier warnings and faster emergency action ahead of recent flash flooding, with plans to expand this work to ensure warnings reach the communities most at risk.
