Madhesh Leads the Way Towards Early Warning for All

Photo: Jitendra Raj Bajracharya/ICIMOD.

For Immediate Release

Lalgadh, Dhanusha | 7 August 2025

Local mayoral and community representatives from eight municipalities across the Madhesh Province gathered in Lalgadh today to sign a milestone agreement for better flood preparedness in the Ratu river.

Those present at the signing ceremony included representatives from the municipalities of Bardibas, Bhangha, Balwa, Jaleshwor, Loharpatti, Matihani, Mohattari and Ek dada, community groups, and technical partners committed to supporting and ensuring the sustainability of Community-Based Flood Early Warning Systems (CBFEWS) in the Ratu river basin.

A ‘Letter of Cooperation’ was signed signalling an agreement between municipalities for the establishment of a basket fund. This fund will help communities in maintaining and upgrading different CBFEWS systems installed along the Ratu.

Following the signing of the agreement, Chief Minister Satish Kumar Singh said, “The Ratu River Basin is one of the most vulnerable areas in Nepal, where floods can upturn lives and livelihoods within hours.”

“Community involvement is the backbone of any effective Early Warning System. By institutionalizing these systems and ensuring local ownership, we are safeguarding the progress made so far and preparing communities to act early and save lives.”

Similar basket funds have been created for other watersheds including the Khado and Lal Bakaiya rivers.

The money pooled into these basket funds supports troubleshooting and system maintenance, capacity building and any future upgrades that the systems may need.

ICIMOD first installed a CBFEWS in the Ratu River in 2015, in collaboration with UNDP, the Global Environment Facility and the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology. The system provides up to 3 hours of lead time for downstream communities and played a critical role in relaying early warning to over 60000 residents during flood events in the Khando watershed in 2024.

The system is primarily driven by a few communities where local caretakers nominated by the municipalities along with municipal disaster management committees disseminate alerts through sirens and mobile messages, giving families the time they need to evacuate and protect their assets.

People living along these flood-prone areas have reported that these systems have significantly reduced loss of life and property over the past decade. However, their continued functionality depends on strong institutional support and adequate financing. Without sustained investment, CBFEWS run the risk of becoming dysfunctional over time.

Nepal is also a frontrunner in implementing the UN Secretary General’s Early Warning for All initiative, which aims to ensure that every person on Earth is protected by life-saving early warning systems by 2027. Provincial government support in Nepal, primarily in Madhesh, has focused on linking community-based systems like those in the Ratu River with the local police and civil administration to ensure proper relief measures during peak floods.

“Early Warning for All cannot be achieved without the participation of those most at risk,” said Izabella Koziell, Deputy Director General of ICIMOD. “What we are witnessing in Madhesh is a model for how governments, technical agencies, local partners, and communities can work together. What is crucial is that communities have the power to respond and prepare for sudden disasters and take necessary actions to offset further losses.”

The outcomes of today’s agreement will feed directly into scaling up of CBFEWS across other vulnerable river basins in Nepal’s Lower Koshi region. It also paves the way for stronger municipal ownership, dedicated financing, and integration of CBFEWS into local development and disaster risk reduction planning.

ICIMOD also seeks to take the success of these partnerships outside of Nepal, to other countries including Bhutan, Bangladesh and India. Given the increasing incidence of monsoon-induced disasters in the region, the Madhesh experience will be crucial in informing stakeholders of the benefits of CBFEWS in other countries.

Acknowledgement: This work is under the Building capabilities for green, climate resilient, and inclusive development in the Lower Koshi River Basin (HI-GRID) initiative. HI-GRID is supported by the Australian Government and implemented by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), local government organisations and project partners to enhance resilience towards the challenge of Too Much and Too Little water in the Lower Koshi River Basin in Nepal.

For further details please contact:
Neraz Tuladhar – Media Officer
Neraz.Tuladhar@icimod.org