Assessing levels of migrant-friendliness in the context of vulnerability to climate variability, change and environmental hazard: A comparison of two different-sized cities

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The paper presents an index of vulnerability to climate variability, change and environmental hazard for Dhaka (mega-city) and Cumilla (medium-sized city), to determine how migrant-friendly the cities are for people fleeing rural poverty and environmental destruction. Three key functional components: adaptive capacity, sensitivity, and exposure; incorporating six parameters: demographic, political, economic, social, physical, and environmental and 36 indicators have been used to create the Vulnerability Index (VI). Data is utilised from 253 household surveys, focus groups, semi-structured in-depth interviews and secondary data analysis. Composite indices and differential vulnerabilities are presented and compared, demonstrating that Cumilla is less vulnerable to disruption caused by socio-economic, political and environmental change, has a higher adaptive capacity, and is less vulnerable overall than Dhaka. Unlike Dhaka, Cumilla suffers from fewer socio-economic disadvantages such as traffic congestion, crime, unemployment, and water access issues. In terms of exposure to adverse environmental events and trends, Dhaka suffers more flooding, waterlogging, air and water pollution, and higher annual temperature and temperature variability and lower monsoon rainfall and monsoon rainfall variability than Cumilla. The results suggest Cumilla could be a more migrant-friendly destination for poor migrants than Dhaka. This paper investigates the stresses and societal crisis in mega-cities, and contributes to devising plans to mitigate them. These findings are of increasing importance in a situation of increasing climate change and migratory flows caused in part by climate change. Overall, the results of this study could contribute to understanding the challenges faced by mega-cities with similar climatic, socioeconomic, urban, and vulnerability conditions, in which 1 billion people currently reside.