“I am in shock. I have never seen such floods in my lifetime. I am worried about my family's future." Dulali, 52-year-old women from Kabirhat, Noakhali was addressing how intense this recent flood was.
The eastern flash floods have aggravated the vulnerabilities of under privileged groups, including the poor and the ultra-poor, women, children and adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating mothers, elderlies, female headed households, persons with disabilities, the chronically ill, religious minorities, and gender diverse people.
As I navigated through sunken communities after the flash floods, nothing had perhaps prepared me to deal with the stories of women resorting to drinking rainwater to quench their dire thirst. I try hard to silence the memories of the howling cries of a woman in a flood-marooned house and there after passing through scores of bloating carcasses of cows, was indicating the loss of life and loss of being.
The first vivid memory I have on gender dimensions of disasters is the striking news and an image of a mother and baby after the super cyclone Sidr that welcomed me at my breakfast table almost two decades ago. The newborn born during one of Bangladesh's worst crises, namely Cyclone Sidr, symbolized much of a beacon of hope for many, while for others it is indicator for the need of preparedness to counter the likes of candlelit births witnessed during the recent flash floods in eastern Bangladesh.
Relating with this, the first thing I am asking about the looming fate of pregnant and lactating mothers. While it may be true that nature itself does not discriminate based on gender, it may also perhaps be logical to ask whether our society and systems are ready to accommodate gender-differentiated needs and priorities during emergencies?
Questions to ponder over; Are we accounting for baby food in our relief packages? Are mothers getting adequate micronutrient supplementation? Can mobile health clinics be deployed in hard-to-reach affected areas? Are there safe spaces with adequate privacy for mothers to breastfeed and nurture their young?
There is much perhaps that I have learned about the harsh realities of disasters while treading through knee-to-waist deep water in rural mud roads for a Rapid Gender Analysis (RGA) of the recent floods by Oxfam. Upon return from the flood response, we not only felt good-hearted for helping the underprivileged but were also extremely worried about how people were managing amidst muddled water and collapsed sanitation system.
During my visit an overcrowded flood shelter repurposed from a school in Noakhali district for the RGA by Oxfam, I was faced with a similar reality. Women and girls shared that not only did they not have separate toilets for males and females, they had no functional toilets at all. Residents with disabilities were inarguably facing even more difficulties. During my own relatively short-lived hardship, I couldn't help but resonate with the women's menstrual hygiene management needs, as my periods were due soon. For women, prolonged exposure to flood water and inadequate sanitation also heightens their exposure to communicable diseases i.e. urinary and reproductive tract infections. And to make matters worse, the community was facing snake infestations to add on to their list of worries.
Hosne Ara Begum (38), a resident of the flood-affected area in Chhagalnaiya Upazila, Feni, said, 'Throughout the day, we held it in because we felt embarrassed, and at night, the women in our family had to use a saree for privacy on the roof to defecate.'
Harmful socio-cultural norms and consequential restricted mobilities of women, girls, and gender diverse people, raise their barriers in accessing relief and safe refuge, as well as to meet their basic needs and services during emergencies. In the aftermath of disasters, females are also quite often exposed to increased risks of GBV and exploitation, exacerbated by lack of community-based reporting channels and protection mechanisms.
With schools closed for prolonged duration, disasters also put boys at increased peril of child labor, while girls face increased threats of child marriage. Worryingly, parents and teachers also shared that they are not yet scheduled to receive stipends for students yet i.e. for girls. In the meantime, Feni and Noakhali districts has already had child marriage prevalence rates of 38.7% and 42.9% respectively, with intimate partner violence rate in the region as high as 42.5% in the recent past.
In the recent past in Feni and Noakhali districts, around 24.43% and 16.12% of those engaged in agriculture work have been females respectively, and there have been around 18.98% and 12.36% female headed holdings respectively. On the other hand, women often get left-out from listings for farmer cards and fisherfolk cards, excluding them from such benefits. Whether post-disaster or even during a seasonal paddy harvest period, the plight of women in agriculture remains largely invisible in Bangladesh, due to lack of recognition of their contribution in this occupation and sector.
The flood not just affects women but men too. Feni and Noakhali are also districts with a relatively large number of male migrants living abroad, leaving behind female household heads, who quite often face socio-cultural restrictions on their mobilities as well as decision-making roles, even during emergencies.
Flood water decreased, and the scares of floods are uncovered. This is high time to take coordinated action to deal with gender dimensions. Urgent interventions are critical to address immediate gender-specific needs and priorities. Mid to long-term interventions are also crucial for the socio-economic recovery and rehabilitation of the affected. As a way forward, women's agencies also need to be strengthened at both the family and community levels, especially through their increased participation at disaster management committees, WASH (water, sanitation, and health) committees, and food security consultation forums. Side by side, an enabling environment also needs to be created for addressing gender in emergencies and feminist local humanitarian leadership.
We don't want to anyone left behind!
The writer is the Head of Gender Justice and Social Inclusion at Oxfam in Bangladesh 
