International Journal of Disaster Risk Managemen (IJDRM)

International Journal of Disaster Risk Management is a peer-reviewed (twice a year) journal serves all aspects of disaster studies, policy, and management. It provides a platform for academics, policymakers and practitioners to publish high-quality research and practice concerning natural disasters, anthropogenic disasters, complex political emergencies and crises around the world. View - http://internationaljournalofdisasterriskmanagement.com/index.php/Vol1/about

Volunteer-led emergency flood response in Bangladesh: Evidence for strengthening disaster-risk governance

Authors

Meherjan Islam
Md. Abidul Islam
Farzana Afroj
Afra Adiba Islam
Onamika Karmakar
Abdullah Al Mahmud Nayem
Md. Ahasanul Hoque

Abstract

Bangladesh is highly vulnerable to floods, like natural disasters. Yet, contributions of volunteer-led non-profit organizations (NVOs) in emergency response remain underexplored. This paper investigates how an NVO responded to a flood, from rapid rescue to post-flood recovery, and evaluates the effects of its engagement on public health, organizational learning and growth, and community resilience. We applied a mixed-methods approach, combining organizational document reviews, structured interviews with seven key volunteers, direct field observations, and photographic documentation of relief and medical camp activities (21–28 August 2024). Quantitative data on reported illnesses were analyzed using STATA-18 and R through descriptive statistics, univariate analysis, post-hoc comparisons, and multinomial logistic regression. Qualitative data underwent thematic analysis with a deductive coding framework. The NVO provided critical support through rapid rescue, targeted relief, and medical camps addressing integumentary (46.5%), respiratory (13.2%), skeletal (5%), gastrointestinal (2.6%), and other illnesses (32.7%). Thematic analysis highlighted organizational strengths, including field-level experience, decentralized leadership, adaptability, and strong collaborative capacity with government and other non-government actors. Despite resource constraints, the NVO demonstrated high operational effectiveness and recognition during the crisis. Formal integration of NVOs into national disaster coordination mechanisms is recommended. Institutional, technical, and financial support can strengthen disaster risk reduction, governance, and social development in resource-constrained settings. This study establishes novelty by linking health impact assessment with organizational learning in volunteer-led disaster response, combining quantitative outcomes and qualitative insights to show how grassroots organizations complement formal disaster management and provide actionable recommendations for integration into governance.

Keywords: Bangladesh; community resilience; disaster response; flood; public health; volunteer-led emergency response

Publication details

International Journal of Disaster Risk Management (IJDRM), Vol. 8, No. 1 (2026), pp. 163-182.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.66050/jf110s44

Read the full open-access article:
https://internationaljournalofdisasterriskmanagement.com/index.php/Vol1/article/view/168

Download PDF:
https://internationaljournalofdisasterriskmanagement.com/index.php/Vol1/article/view/168/209

Suggested citation

Islam, M., Islam, M. A., Afroj, F., Islam, A. A., Karmakar, O., Nayem, A. A. M., & Hoque, M. A. (2026). Volunteer-led emergency flood response in Bangladesh: Evidence for strengthening disaster-risk governance. International Journal of Disaster Risk Management, 8(1), 163-182. https://doi.org/10.66050/jf110s44

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About IJDRM

International Journal of Disaster Risk Management (IJDRM) is a double-blind peer-reviewed (twice a year), open-access journal that serves all aspects of disaster studies, policy, and management. It provides a platform for academics, policymakers, and practitioners to publish high-quality research and practice concerning natural disasters, anthropogenic disasters, complex political emergencies, and crises around the world. The publisher is Scientific-Professional Society for Disaster Risk Management, Belgrade, Serbia - link. The founder of the journal is Assist. Prof. Vladimir M. Cvetković from the University of Belgrade, Faculty of Security Studies - link ISSN (printed edition) 2620-2662, ISSN (electronic edition) 2620-2786, UDC: 614.8.069 Submission of the articles doesn't involve article processing charges (APCs) neither submission charges. The journal crosses and affects interdisciplinary boundaries to promote communication, collaboration, and teamwork between professions and disciplines to avoid (prevention) or to limit (mitigation and preparedness) the adverse impacts of hazards, within the broad context of sustainable development. The journal encourages the interchange of ideas and experience, to decrease the risk of disasters and build community resilience within the context of sustainable development and planetary boundaries. This is an open-access journal which means that all content is freely available without charge to the user or his/her institution. Users are allowed to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of the articles, or use them for any other lawful purpose, without asking prior permission from the publisher or the author. Keywords Disasters, disaster risk management, natural disaster, technological disaster, emergency situations, crisis management, theory and practice, mitigation, preparedness, hazards, policy, natural, complex, emergencies, political, aid, relief, developing, humanitarian, field, reports, refugee, journal, research, analysis, review. This journal permits and encourages authors to post items submitted to the journal on personal websites or institutional repositories both prior to and after publication while providing bibliographic details that credit, if applicable, its publication in this journal. International Journal of Disaster Risk Management (IJDRM) allows authors to deposit publisher's version/PDF in an institutional repository, research gate, Academia.edu, and non-commercial subject-based repositories, or to publish it on Author's personal website (including social networking sites) and/or departmental website, at any time after publication in compliance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial – NoDerrivatives 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). The Publisher's copyright and source must be acknowledged and a link must be made to the article's DOI (HTML link). Journal will cover all aspects of disaster risk management from a global perspective, including but not limited to: Disaster and crisis management theory and practice, Risk awareness and assessment, Hazard and vulnerability analysis, Knowledge development including education, training, research, and information on disasters, Public commitment and institutional frameworks, including organizational, policy, legislation, and community action, Disaster prevention, mitigation, response, recovery planning, policies, and implementation, Promotes the interchange of ideas between practitioners, policy-makers, and academics. Submission Process Authors are kindly invited to submit their formatted full papers. All paper submissions will be blind peer-reviewed and evaluated based on originality, research content, correctness, relevance to conference, and readability (reviewer form). Please read the complete submission and formatting guidelines before submitting your paper. Please, use the template for writing the article - link and guidelines for contributors - link Papers that are not adapted to the form will be rejected. You can submit your paper through the following - http://internationaljournalofdisasterriskmanagement.com/index.php/Vol1/about/submissions

Editor-in-Chief - Assist. Prof. Vladimir M. Cvetković

Vladimir M. Cvetkovic is the Assis. Prof. (Disaster Risk Management) at the University of Belgrade, Faculty of Security, and has been engaged in research in the field of disaster studies for 15 years. He has published over 250 research papers and 20 scientific monographs. He is the founder of the Scientific Professional Society for Disaster Risk Management in Serbia, the International Institute for Disaster Research, and Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Disaster Risk Management.

International Journal of Disaster Risk Managemen (IJDRM)

International Journal of Disaster Risk Management (IJDRM)

Volunteer-led emergency flood response in Bangladesh: Evidence for strengthening disaster-risk governance

Authors

Abstract

Publication details

Suggested citation

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