Climate Change : National adaptation plan in offing

Bangladesh in a draft National Adaptation Plan has proposed TK 7,306 billion investment in 15 climate programmes till 2050.
The programmes included nature-based and eco-engineering interventions, agricultural investment, water sector and marine resource management in short, medium and long term actions.
Environment, forest and climate change ministry organised a pre-validation workshop on the issue at Hotel Intercontinental in the city on Saturday.
While addressing the workshop, environment minister Md Shahab Uddin said the government wanted to formulate an effective adaptation plan to address the risks of climate change.
‘Bangladesh will be able to minimise the risk of climate change by adopting and implementing short, medium and long term projects as planned,’ he said.
In the drafted NAP 14 hazards, 11 climate stress areas and four priority sectors — crop, water, urban and disaster management were given emphasis.
Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the ministry Saber Hossain Chowdhury, quoting a report, said that Bangladesh is in high risk but low prepared country in climate change issue.
He said that the government had a number of plans but hardly implemented.
‘We need to evaluate our achievement from previous plans and prepare the next from gathering experience from that,’ he said while speaking as special guest.
Bangladesh needs a risk profile and clear information about the loss from climate change, he added.
He also emphasized accountability of agencies to the parliament and standing committees.
Deputy minister on environment and climate Habibun Nahar said area-specific solution for solving local problems was important.
‘Problems of the people living in the coastal area should be given priority,’ she said.
Shahab Uddin said the government is working to ensure security for the people in terms of food, water, electricity, health and the others. Initiatives are being taken to further enhance the capacity to deal with natural disasters.
Climate specialist Ainun Nishat said that only 20 to 22 countries have their climate adaptation plan and Bangladesh is one of them to prepare a NAP.
He said that climate should be addressed in all development projects.
Centre for Environmental and Geographic Information Services executive director and a member of NAP committee Malik Fida A Khan said that the drafted NAP will be incorporated with views of different walks of people before finalising it.
Secretary of the ministry Md Mostafa Kamal presided over the workshop, while the parliamentary standing committee chairman Saber Hossain Chowdhury, national project director of the NAP Preparation Project Md Mizanul Hoque Chowdhury and deputy resident representative of UNDP Bangladesh Van Nguyen addressed the workshop as special guests.