Promoting anticipatory actions to address climate and environment risks for community transformation

Date and Location:
Nov 20, 2025 | Kathmandu, Nepal
Nov 26, 2025 | Dhaka, Bangladesh
Dec 9, 2025 | Islamabad, Pakistan

About the meeting

ICIMOD is organising a half-day consultation meeting to identify the key hotspot areas in high altitude areas of Ganges and Indus River basin in Nepal and Pakistan and low-lying areas in Bangladesh. The consultation meeting will provide an overview of the Promoting Anticipatory Actions to Addressing Climate and Environment Risks for Community Transformation (PROAACT) project, which is planned for implementation across the Ganges River Basin in Bangladesh and Nepal, and Indus River Basin in Pakistan.

The consultation meeting will focus on identifying climate hotspots in Ganges Basin in Nepal, Bangladesh and Indus basin in Pakistan and prioritising locations for project implementation focusing on locally led adaptation with an emphasis on Nature-based Solutions (NbS).

Objectives

The main objective of the consultation meeting is to identify the key hotspot areas in Ganges and Indus River basin and identify key climate stress and climatic, environmental and socio-economic challenges in the identified climate hotspots.

Expected outcomes

• Identified key hotspots areas in Ganges River Basin in Bangladesh, Nepal and Indus River Basin in Pakistan.
• Identified key climate stress and challenges in the identified climate hotspots.
• Strengthened network with governments, development partners and other stakeholders for project implementation.

Background

The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) is implementing the project “Promoting Anticipatory Actions to Address Climate and Environmental Risks for Community Transformation (PROAACT)”, funded by the EU–UNEP Partnership. The EU and UNEP have prioritised South Asia, recognising the region’s heightened vulnerability to climate and environmental risks, particularly those linked to the Water–Energy–Food–Environment (WEFE) nexus and the associated threats to socio-ecological stability. Based on a feasibility assessment, the partnership has identified two key transboundary river basins – the Ganges and the Indus – and three South Asian countries – Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan – as the focus areas for implementation.

The Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region, home to the world’s highest mountain ranges and often referred to as ‘the Third Pole’ or the ‘Water Tower of Asia’, serves as a vital water source for twelve major river basins, including the Ganges and the Indus – the two most critical for South Asia. Over the past six decades, extreme weather events in these basins have become more frequent and intense, with water scarcity and droughts prevailing during the dry season, and devastating floods occurring during the monsoon.

In the coming decades, the frequency and severity of water scarcity, water-induced hazards, and seasonal shortages are projected to increase significantly. These climate change impacts have serious implications for communities, particularly poor and marginalised groups. As a result, a range of socio-economic challenges – such as poverty, hunger, and health concerns – are being further exacerbated, increasing the risks of escalating social tensions, deepening existing vulnerabilities, and placing additional stress on natural resources. Given the social and gender hierarchies across the region, women, girls, persons with disabilities, the elderly, low-income groups, disadvantaged communities, and other vulnerable populations face heightened risks.

In this context, the initiative seeks to support local and national stakeholders in addressing climate risks and socio-ecological vulnerabilities through tailored interventions, such as locally led, inclusive, and future-oriented anticipatory adaptation planning, and by supporting the implementation of selected priority actions, particularly those focusing on nature-based solutions in Bangladesh and Nepal (Ganges Basin) and Pakistan (Indus Basin).

The project primarily aims to address the interconnected climate, environmental, and socio-economic challenges faced by HKH communities in the Ganges and Indus River Basins. It does so through the implementation of locally led and anticipatory adaptation actions and the promotion of regional cooperation and collaboration across the HKH region, aligning with the national climate priorities of Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan. The initiative will strengthen inclusive, community-level capacity to plan and implement adaptation programmes, including National Adaptation Plans (NAPs).

The initiative targets communities in key climate risk hotspot areas of the Ganges and Indus River Basins in Nepal, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, through eight local grantees – non-governmental organisations and community-based organisations – selected through an open Call for Proposals process. It aims to directly benefit local communities within these areas and indirectly benefit communities across the HKH region through regional knowledge exchange and learning.