U.S. Citizen Services

Information for Travelers

• Avian Influenza: How to Prepare for “Sheltering-In-Place”
• Antidiscrimination and Whistleblower Protection Laws (No FEAR Act)
• Register with the Embassy
• Travel Advisory
• Warden Messages
• Demonstration Notices
• American Citizen Services

About the Warden System

The Warden System is a network of American volunteers who assist the Embassy in rapidly disseminating official U.S. Government information to American citizens in Bangladesh during emergencies. Receipt of such information, sometimes in the absence of an operating telecommunication system, was critical for many Americans during the 1998 floods.  Warden systems have also been activated in many countries to convey information on terrorist threats.

Structure:  Our Bangladesh Warden System, like most others worldwide, is organized geographically with Wardens assigned to a number of geographic areas, or Zones.  The Warden undertakes to convey official information from the embassy to the registered American citizens in his/her Zone whenever the System is activated. Because most zones are either physically large or contain many Americans, the Embassy must enlist the aid of other Americans living in the zone to serve as Sub-Wardens.  The system, ideally, is a contact "tree" in which the Wardens and Sub-Wardens each undertake to contact 10-15 American families.

Registration:  Wardens can only contact Americans if the latter have registered with the Embassy.  Americans are therefore encouraged to register and ensure that their contact information is up-to-date.  Registration information is protected under the Privacy Act and can be used by Wardens only in the execution of their volunteer duties.  Registered Americans who are unfamiliar with, or who have not been contacted by, their zone Warden or Sub-Warden should contact the American Citizen Services unit in the Consular Section. (Tel: [880] [2] 882-3805).

Volunteers Needed : The Embassy does not have the resources to contact, individually, large numbers of Americans, especially in times of emergency.  The number of wardens and sub-wardens willing to serve determines the effectiveness of the System. In order to make this system effective, citizens interested in volunteering should contact the American Citizen Services unit in the Embassy Consular Section (Tel: [880] [2] 882-3805).