Understanding implementers’ perspectives on the barriers and facilitators of wash interventions under the JAMUNA project in climate-vulnerable char areas of Bogura, Bangladesh: A qualitative implementation research study

Abstract

Background: Bangladesh's riverine char communities are among its most climate-vulnerable populations, where recurrent flooding and erosion repeatedly destroy water and sanitation infrastructure and raise the burden of diarrhoeal disease. The JAMUNA project, a joint venture by BDRCS and Swiss Red Cross, delivers WASH interventions here, yet implementers' experiences of delivery remain largely undocumented.

Objectives: To identify the barriers and facilitators experienced by implementers of WASH interventions under the JAMUNA project, and the adaptive strategies they used to overcome challenges in the char areas of Bogura.

Methods: A qualitative exploratory study was conducted in Chaluabaria and Kazla unions, Sariakandi Upazila, Bogura. Between March and April 2026, 17 key informant interviews were conducted with implementers from multiple project tiers. Participants were selected purposively until data saturation was reached, using six semi-structured guides based on the CFIR domains. Interviews were held in Bangla, transcribed verbatim, and analysed using the Framework Method in Dedoose, producing 657 coded excerpts.

Results: Facilitators included dismantlable, displacement-friendly latrines and raised DRR tubewells suited to flooding; community co-financing that strengthened ownership; organisational coverage of field-staff travel costs; school-based hygiene sessions; and revitalization of the Ward Disaster Management Committee, anchoring delivery in local governance. Barriers included geographic isolation, recurrent displacement, poverty, political and kinship influence over beneficiary selection, and workforce shortages from reliance on unpaid volunteers. Adaptive strategies included multi-step beneficiary verification, engaging religious leaders, instalmentbased bKash payments, and locally tailored session delivery.

Conclusions: This study demonstrates that WASH delivery in the char areas is not a discrete technical task but a continuous process of adaptation to displacement, poverty, and local power dynamics. Although portable, raised infrastructure was essential, its effectiveness depended on community co-financing, digital payment mechanisms, the engagement of trusted local leaders, and an adequately supported frontline workforce. Together, these social and organisational factors were as central to implementation as the infrastructure itself.