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For climate migrants in Bangladesh, town offers new life

Monira Khatun, 29, stands by the door of her house in Chila Bazar, in Mongla, Bangladesh, March 4, 2022. Her father died soon as she returned back home, after being abandoned by her husband, leaving her to shoulder three other family members' care. “My parents’ home was gone to the river for erosion, we had no land to cultivate,” Khatun said. She ended up working at a factory in a special economic zone that employs thousands of climate refugees in the southwestern town of Mongla, where Bangladesh’s second-largest seaport is located. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) Reshma Begum, 28, collects water from the Pasur River in Mongla, Bangladesh, March 4, 2022. Begum used to catch fish in the river that swallowed her home, making her three-member family homeless. Now she lives temporarily on another man’s land and works at a factory in the export processing zone. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) Craftsmen build a fishing boat at Chila Bazar, in Mongla, Bangladesh, March 4, 2022. Mongla is located near the world's largest mangrove forest Sundarbans. The town was once vulnerable to floods and river erosion, but now it has become more resilient with improved infrastructure against high tides and erosion. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) Sheikh Abdur Rahman, mayor of Mongla town, talks to The Associated Press in Mongla, Bangladesh, March 3, 2022. The town was once vulnerable to floods and river erosion, but now it has become more resilient with improved infrastructure against high tides and erosion.“We need more investment to protect Mongla town from erosion and high tides. People feel safer now, but we need to do more,” he said. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) Punur Daan, a fisherman, catches baby shrimp from Pasur River in Mongla, Bangladesh, March 4, 2022. Mongla is located near the world's largest mangrove forest Sundarbans. The town was once vulnerable to floods and river erosion, but now it has become more resilient with improved infrastructure against high tides and erosion. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) Workers set hair on mannequins at a factory inside an export processing zone in Mongla, Bangladesh, March 3, 2022. The town was once vulnerable to floods and river erosion, but now it has become more resilient with improved infrastructure against high tides and erosion. Investments have doubled at a Mongla export processing zone over last four years, creating new jobs in its factories for the climate refugees from the region. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) An aerial view shows Mongla town in Bangladesh, March 3, 2022. This town was once vulnerable to floods and river erosion, but now it has become more resilient with improved infrastructure against high tides and erosion. Bangladesh's second-largest seaport is located in Mongla. Recent investment in an export processing zone that houses factories has created new opportunities for the climate migrants who have lost their homes, land and livelihood due to impacts of climate change. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) A worker brushes mannequin wigs at a factory inside an export processing zone in Mongla, Bangladesh, March 3, 2022. The town was once vulnerable to floods and river erosion, but now it has become more resilient with improved infrastructure against high tides and erosion. Investments have doubled at a Mongla export processing zone over last four years, creating new jobs in its factories for the climate refugees from the region. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) Workers walk to work at an export processing zone early in the morning after crossing the Mongla river in Mongla, Bangladesh, March 3, 2022. This Bangladeshi town stands alone to offer new life to thousands of climate migrants. Investments have doubled at a Mongla export processing zone over last four years, creating new jobs in its factories for the climate refugees from the region. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) Workers walk to work at an export processing zone early in the morning after crossing the Mongla river in Mongla, Bangladesh, March 3, 2022. This Bangladeshi town stands alone to offer new life to thousands of climate migrants. Investments have doubled at a Mongla export processing zone over last four years, creating new jobs in its factories for the climate refugees from the region. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) Workers gather in the morning at a boat terminal waiting to cross the Mongla river in Mongla, Bangladesh, March 3, 2022. This Bangladeshi town stands alone to offer new life to thousands of climate migrants. Investments have doubled at a Mongla export processing zone over last four years, creating new jobs in its factories for the climate refugees from the region.v(AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) Reshma Begum, 28, wipes her tears as she stands on her lost land, narrating how Cyclone Amphan destroyed her house at South Kainmari, in Mongla, Bangladesh, March 4, 2022. Begum used to catch fish in the river that swallowed her home, making her three-member family homeless. Now she lives temporarily on another man’s land and works at a factory in the export processing zone. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) Houses and trees affected during the 2020 Cyclone Amphan sit on the water's edge at Chila Bazar in Mongla, Bangladesh, March 3, 2022. Mongla is located near the world's largest mangrove forest Sundarbans. The town was once vulnerable to floods and river erosion, but now it has become more resilient with improved infrastructure against high tides and erosion. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) Workers gather in the morning at a boat terminal, waiting to cross the Mongla river, in Mongla, Bangladesh, March 3, 2022. This Bangladeshi town, located near the world’s largest mangrove forest Sundarbans, stands alone to offer new life to thousands of climate migrants. The town was once vulnerable to floods and river erosion. Now it has become more resilient with improved infrastructure and special economic zones to support climate migrants. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu)