Bangladesh Water Development Board

What Bangladesh Water Development Board does

Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) is a fully autonomous government corporation under the Ministry of Water Resources of the Government of Bangladesh, responsible for the national mandate of water resource management, flood control, irrigation, drainage, and riverbank protection. Headquartered in Dhaka with a 10,000+ employee workforce organized into central, zonal, circle, and 64 field division offices covering all districts of Bangladesh, BWDB operates the country's principal hydrological infrastructure including embankments, barrages, dams, and irrigation networks, with 87 ongoing projects and 1,066 completed projects documented in its systems. The agency runs a portfolio of digital platforms including the Flood Forecasting and Warning Center (FFWC), the Bangladesh River Information Management System (BRIMS), a Scheme Information Management System (SiMS), a Project Management Information System (PMIS), a GIS Web Portal on ArcGIS Enterprise, a Budget and Fund Management System, a Contract Information Management System (CIMS), and a mobile flood information app, integrated with national e-governance platforms such as D-Nothi, e-GP, and the Grievance Redress System (GRS).

BWDB is funded entirely through the Government of Bangladesh's Annual Development Programme (ADP) under the Ministry of Water Resources and does not generate commercial revenue; limited irrigation service charges may apply under BWDB Irrigation Service Charge regulations. The organization is governed by a 13-member Water Council chaired by the Minister of Water Resources, with day-to-day leadership provided by a Director General supported by Additional Directors General and Chief Engineers across civil, mechanical, hydrology, planning, monitoring, river management, design, training, and climate change management divisions. BWDB's statutory mandate is codified under the BWDB Act 2000, aligned with the National Water Policy 1999, and its primary stakeholders are the citizens of Bangladesh, the agricultural sector, and the parent ministry, with services delivered as public goods rather than commercial offerings.

Name

Bangladesh Water Development Board

Legal name

Bangladesh Water Development Board (বাংলাদেশ পানি উন্নয়ন বোর্ড)

Website

https://bwdb.gov.bd

Company type

Private

Founded year

1959

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Bangladesh Water Development Board is a government agency under the Ministry of Water Resources, managing national flood control, irrigation, drainage, and riverbank infrastructure with a 10,000+ workforce across all 64 districts of Bangladesh.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Water Resources Management

NAICS

Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (22131), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (221310), Administration of Air and Water Resource and Solid Waste Management Programs (92411)

SIC

Water Supply (4941), Water, Sewer, Pipeline, Comm & Power Line Construction (1623)

akta.pro primary industry

Water Supply & Wastewater Utilities Administration (BPAIACAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Water, Wastewater & Stormwater Compliance (BPAHAJAJ), Erosion Control & Stormwater BMP Maintenance (IMAIAIAG)

Keywords

• Water resources management
• Flood control infrastructure
• Irrigation engineering
• River basin development
• Hydrological monitoring

Headquarters

HQ city

Dhaka

HQ country

Bangladesh

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Government Development Budget Allocation: Funded through annual development budget allocations from the Government of Bangladesh under the Ministry of Water Resources. Projects are implemented through ADP (Annual Development Programme) funding mechanisms.

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) is a fully autonomous government agency under the Ministry of Water Resources that manages Bangladesh's water resources through structural works such as embankments, barrages, flood control infrastructure, irrigation systems, drainage networks, and riverbank protection. The agency also operates digital systems for flood forecasting, river information management, project monitoring, and GIS-based spatial data. Services are delivered nationwide through a hierarchical structure of central, zonal, circle, and field division offices across all 64 districts.

Product overview

Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) is a government agency operating under the Ministry of Water Resources. It functions as a unified platform with multiple specialized digital systems and physical infrastructure services. The organization manages water resources through a combination of structural works (embankments, barrages, flood control infrastructure) and digital services. The product portfolio includes digital platforms for project management, hydrological monitoring, flood forecasting, river information management, GIS mapping, budget management, and citizen services. These systems collectively support the agency's core mandate of flood control, irrigation, drainage, and river bank preservation across Bangladesh.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Flood Control Infrastructure Construction and maintenance of embankments, barrages, dams, and structural works protecting millions of hectares from flood damage across Bangladesh; delivered for the Government of Bangladesh and the general public.
• Irrigation Infrastructure Development and operation of irrigation water supply systems and drainage infrastructure serving agricultural communities, with regulated service charges applied under BWDB Irrigation Service Charge regulations.
• Riverbank Protection Services Riverbank stabilization and protection works safeguarding settlements, agricultural land, and infrastructure from erosion along Bangladesh's major rivers.
• Coastal Zone Protection Coastal infrastructure and salinity intrusion prevention works in Bangladesh's coastal regions, addressing saltwater damage to agriculture and protecting coastal communities.
• Flood Forecast and Warning Center (FFWC) Public-facing real-time flood forecasting and early warning system delivering flood predictions and safety alerts to citizens of Bangladesh.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature6 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Water and Energy Commission Secretariat (WECS), Nepal: Statutory body under Nepal's government coordinating water and energy resources policy. Comparable as a national water resources agency in a South Asian Himalayan flood-plain context with similar climate vulnerability and donor-funded infrastructure programs.
• Department of Public Health Engineering (DPHE), Bangladesh: Bangladesh government department responsible for water supply and sanitation infrastructure. Comparable in domestic operating environment, government agency model, and overlap on water-related service delivery, though focused on drinking water and sanitation rather than flood control.
• Vietnam Academy for Water Resources (VAWR): Vietnam's national research and training institution for water resources under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Comparable in regional floodplain context, government-affiliated mandate on irrigation and drainage, and reliance on donor-funded programs for modernization.

Others

• International Water Management Institute (IWMI): International research organization under CGIAR focused on water management for food security and climate resilience. Comparable in subject matter (water resources, irrigation, flood management) and regional focus (South and Southeast Asia), but operates as a research partner rather than an infrastructure execution agency.
• Mekong River Commission (MRC): Intergovernmental organization coordinating water resources management across the Mekong basin. Comparable in subject matter (river basin management, flood forecasting, hydrological monitoring) and adjacent geographic context, but operates as a regional coordinating body rather than as a national infrastructure execution agency.

Broad incumbents

• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE): U.S. federal agency executing large-scale civil works including flood control, navigation, and water resource infrastructure. Comparable in scale and breadth of water infrastructure mandate, though the USACE operates with a much larger budget and engineering workforce, and under a distinct federal authority model.
• China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research (IWHR): China's national research institute for water resources and hydropower, with strong technical and policy role. Comparable in subject matter (hydrology, flood control design, irrigation) and government affiliation, though it operates primarily as a research and design institute rather than as a project execution agency.

Direct peers

• Bangladesh Haor and Wetland Development Board: Domestic Bangladeshi statutory body under the Ministry of Water Resources focused on haor and wetland development. Comparable in mission (water resource management), regulatory structure (government corporation), and customer base (general public and farmers in Bangladesh).
• Department of Irrigation and Drainage (Malaysia): Malaysian government agency under the Ministry of Environment and Water responsible for irrigation, drainage, and flood mitigation. Comparable in end-to-end mandate (irrigation, drainage, river management), public agency structure, and use of hydrological monitoring and digital flood forecasting systems.
• Central Water Commission (India): India's apex technical organization for water resources, flood forecasting, and hydraulic engineering under the Ministry of Jal Shakti. Directly comparable in mandate (flood control, irrigation, hydrological monitoring), governance structure (government autonomous body), and operating model (national infrastructure execution).

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCszFsefdi5sCUWG2z-kMRlg
• Facebookfacebook.com/bwdb.gov.bd
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bangladesh-water-development-board

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bangladesh Water Development Board