Network Pattern among the Union Disaster Management Committee Members: A Study on Southwest Region of Bangladesh

Bangladesh is the one of the most vulnerable countries towards disaster in worldwide due to its geographical location whereas South-western region is mostly affected by various types of disaster during recent years. Bangladesh Government has established numerous strategies where Union Disaster Management Committees (UDMC) composed by local elected representatives, are constructed for reducing the disaster risk. In disaster management, the Standing Order on Disaster (SOD) is introduced and the role and responsibility of every actor is defined. UDMC defines as a constructive tool which is operating from national to grass root level. Networking among the members of Union Disaster Management Committee (UDMC) plays a significant role as it is very essential for the effectual planning and procedure during disaster. Therefore, the objective of this study is to explore the network pattern among the members of Union Disaster Management Committee (UDMC). A convenience sampling method was used for sampling where sample size of this study is 94. Whereas, Uttar Bedkashi union, Koyra Upazilla, Khulna and Gabura union, Shyamanagar Upazilla, Sathkhira of the South-Western region of Bangladesh are selected for this study. UCINET, VOS-viewer, and STATA software are used for relevant parametric and non-parametric analysis to accomplish the objective of this study. The chairman, NGOs members, secretary of UDMC, and elected members were the central actors in the pre-disaster and post-disaster phases in both unions. The UDMC members of both the unions were more active in the post-disaster phase than the pre-disaster phase. As Gabura UDMC has highest number of central actors, it holds a better position in different measurements than Uttar Bedkashi UDMC. Concentration on the pre-disaster phase is significant for supervising the disaster. The path of interaction among the members should be more specific by which they can communicate more easily. Some significant recommendations have been established for enabling strong cooperation and coordination among the actors for both phases of disaster.

• Supervision