Says UK climate security envoy
Visiting UK Climate Security Envoy Rear Admiral Neil Morisetti yesterday said Bangladesh, one of the most vulnerable countries to natural disasters, is also exposed to potential security risks.
Such risks may come in the form of higher criminal activities and terrorism, said Morisetti, who was on a two-day visit in Bangladesh to assess the country’s vulnerability and security risks.
As a “threat multiplier”, climate change is a non-traditional security challenge that needs a strategic approach beyond the normal sphere of politics and cooperation of the government together with public and private enterprises.
He said the UK is trying to draw up an index of such risks for countries and is committed to help countries overcome the risks through mitigation and adaptation.
A large part of Asia and Africa has been marked as areas of multiple stresses which include Bangladesh, he said while talking to a select group of journalists yesterday.
These areas represent some “choke points”, which may threaten global trade through increased crimes, piracy and conflicts, he observed.
He mentioned that last year, the loss of global trade for natural disasters, mostly due to climate change, amounted to $340 billion, “which is why the climate security risks have to be minimised”.
To elaborate further, he cited the example of how computer prices shot up following tsunami that affected manufacturing of chips in Southeast Asia.
Climate change, he said, “can act as a threat multiplier in those parts of the world where there is already stress regarding food, water, health, and demographic challenges; often in countries where governments don’t have the capacity and resilience to look after their citizens. And it can act as a catalyst for conflict and therefore increase the risk of instability”.
He underscored sharing information on the reasons and kinds of stresses to help the countries better deal with the situation.
-With The Daily Star input
