Hasina seeks Int’l help to address climate change challenges

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina sought technological and financial supports from the international community, particularly resourceful developed countries, to combat the challenges of climate change as Bangladesh is considered one of the worst sufferers for the climatic disorders for no fault of its own.
Addressing the World Climate Conference-3 on Thursday at Geneva International Conference Center (CICG), she explained to the world leadership Bangladesh’s vulnerability to the climate change and apprised them of her government’s plans, programs and strategies for protecting the country’s people from the disastrous impacts of the global warming caused by excessive carbon emissions.
Earlier on her arrival at the CICG at 9:15am (local time), World Meteorological Organization secretary-general Michel Jarraud received the Bangladesh leader. Foreign Minister Dr Dipu Moni, State Minister for Forest and Environment Dr Hasan Mahmud, Foreign Secretary Mijarul Quayes, Ambassador M Ziauddin, PM’s Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad and Permanent Representative to Geneva Mission Abdul Hannan were present.
“I came here with deep concerns of our people, who no sooner had tasted democracy than confronted with critical, dire impacts of climate change,” a worried Prime Minister of Bangladesh told her audience at the UN-sponsored WCC-3 meet.
She observed that through the decades since independence, whatever progress the nation could achieve is being eroded by repeated and increasing vagaries of nature.
“There is no doubt that human-induced climate change is, to a large extent, responsible for these phenomena and, ironically, the people of Bangladesh are least to be blamed for them,” Sheikh Hasina said. She said tackling the formidable challenges facing Bangladesh due to the climate change calls for help of the international community.
To substantiate her call for international aid, the Prime Minister informed the conference that Bangladesh is among the countries severely affected by climate change, and estimates indicate that 20 million Bangladeshis would require relocation due to climate-change impacts by 2050.
A one-metre rise of sea level would inundate a third of Bangladesh, and this would result in mass migration northwards, imposing increasing pressure on land and resources and loss livelihood of about 40 million people, the Prime Minister said.
Sheikh Hasina further pointed out that the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR) has ranked Bangladesh as the most vulnerable country to floods, third-most to tsunami and sixth-most to cyclones, in terms of human exposure.
At present, Bangladesh is experiencing erratic patterns of flooding and droughts, and these have also become a threat to ensuring food security, through sustained agricultural production.
She said cyclones hit the coastal region regularly, causing tragic loss of innumerable lives and immense material damage. Besides, Bangladesh also faces riverbank erosion, landslides, soil degradation and deforestation.
An alarming phenomenon is salinity intrusion into the coastal areas, threatening the Sundarbans, world’s largest mangrove forest- a habitat of rich biodiversity and UNESCO-recognized World Heritage Site.
“The challenge to Bangladesh in facing natural disasters from global warming and climate change is monumental,” she told the global meet on the most worrying problem that threatens the planet as a whole.
Bangladesh government has decided, therefore, to undertake a massive project of dredging all rivers. Capital dredging would keep the country’s rivers on natural course, deepen them to hold more water, restrict flooding, reduce flood damages, reclaim inundated land on either side of rivers, and keep them navigable for movement of people and goods. Maintenance dredging would then ensure sustained regulated water flow of the rivers, the Prime Minister apprised the international community.
She said the land reclaimed could be used for agriculture, homes and even agro-based industrial belts. The silts of the rivers would be used for embankments, and if necessary, raising the height of land with the rise of water levels in the rivers and the sea. On and near the embankments would be created flat, elevated ground for habitation of displaced people with the recovered silts.
“Green belts on the embankments would strengthen the people from the caprice of water flow and erosion. Dykes and concrete support would need to be built for checking and controlling water movement, at required points all over Southern Bangladesh, particularly on the coastal areas,” she said, explaining the gigantic mitigation and adaptation tasks.
Sheikh Hasina continued: Bangladesh, due to its geographical location, has faced natural disasters and, therefore, invested over US$ 10 billion since its independence on flood-management schemes, coastal polders, cyclone and flood shelters, and elevation of roads and highways above flood level.
Recently, she said, the government of Bangladesh has established a Climate Change Fund, with its own resources, to expand community-based disaster preparedness, and adaptation programs.
Bangladesh has also developed crop varieties attuned to climate change, initiated program to cover 20 percent of land with forests by 2015, adopted projects on protecting biodiversity and poverty reduction, strengthened existing coastal green belt, and built 14,000 cyclone shelters, with more on the way.
However, for timely and effective implementation of the schemes and programs, availability of additional resources is imperative, she said.
Moreover, the Prime Minister apprised the conference that decentralization of disaster-management system and involvement of local government institutions is being undertaken ensuring people’s participation in planning and management of disaster preparedness and in dealing with post-disaster exigencies.
“Clearly such an ambitious plan would be possible, only with technological and financial supports of resourceful, developed countries. I would, therefore, urge them to come forward to assist Bangladesh in adapting to climate change,” the Prime Minister said.
Sheikh Hasina portrayed a good image of the people of Bangladesh before the world community for their resolve the move forward circumventing all these odds and adversities. “The people of Bangladesh are undoubtedly resilient and courageous,” she told the meet.
In 1971, the people fought a glorious liberation war inspired by Bangabandhu and the people were baptized then in adversity, and toughened with years of manmade and natural disasters, she observed.
Hasina said the new democratic government, this time around, is determined to change the destiny of the country’s people, with the support of the international community in achieving the government’s goal of a Digital Bangladesh by 2021.
Nonetheless, Bangladesh is eager to collaborate with world community in the areas of mitigation, adaptation, financing, investment, and transfer of technology for facing these new threats on mankind.
“It is clear all must acknowledge their sacred duty to save our climate system, and hence, our planet as a habitable place for future generations,” she said.
“Our government is obliged to provide support to people to remain in their habitation and homes. Moving to supposedly safer areas, already burdened with thick population, would add miseries to all and cause sociological disorders,” she said in her statement at the global meet.
She told her audience that successful partnership of government, non-government and community-based organizations has significantly reduced death toll from natural disasters to small number of hundreds, compared to thousands in the 70s, as last seen with Cyclone Aila in 2009. This does not give room for complacency, for every life is precious and the Bangladesh government is committed to protecting all against such calamities.
The Prime Minister also expressed Bangladesh’s willingness to help the international community in facing the climate-change challenges, with the expertise attained through grappling with adversities forced upon the country.
“Bangladesh is willing to share its experience in these areas with the international community, particularly with countries having similar vulnerabilities to natural disasters,” she said.
Hasina pointed out that a substantial portion of Bangladesh’s scare resources is being utilized for disaster preparedness, post-disaster construction and rehabilitation efforts.
She said estimated damages from Cyclone Aila amount to US $ 1.15 billion, including the cost of rehabilitating people, restoration of their livelihood, reconstruction of homes and embankments, building cluster houses for the homeless, reconstruction of damaged cyclone shelters, and restoration of basic needs like drinking water-supply system.
“Our funds are also being diverted towards attaining clean energy, through tapping renewable energy needs by 2020. Peaceful uses of nuclear energy for sustainable development are also under serious consideration.”
Hasina continued: as for environmental pollution, a series of legal, policy, and institutional measures have been taken, including reducing lead particles in the air, relocating industries producing toxic wastes, ensuring that industries have built-in effluent-treatment facilities, and promoting use of bio-gradable material as alternative to harmful synthetic products.
“Our priorities also include improving early warning, remote sensing and forecasting system. Our plan is to shift to green technologies in our bid for Digital Bangladesh by 2021.”
With these measures the present government is determined to bring a paradigm shift from relief and rehabilitation to disaster-risk reduction, effective early warning dissemination for community empowerment, as part of a broad canvas of disaster management.
“These are undoubtedly daunting tasks for Bangladesh and can only be addressed through enhanced and effective international cooperation,” Hasina said.
She said the world community is in the midst of negotiating a new global climate regime, which should be embedded in the core principles of responsibility sharing.
The Copenhagen Conference’s outcome should include assured adequate and easily accessible funding for adaptation, together with access to scientific credible information to climate change, particularly over sectors like risk reduction, water resources, agriculture, energy, urban planning, health disorders, etc.
It must also ensure affordable and eco-friendly technology transfer to developing countries, especially Least Developed Countries (LDC), side by side with the all-important commitments for deeper cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, Sheikh Hasina told the global policymakers.
She further said climate-change mitigation must not, however, impose constraints on steps taken to alleviate energy poverty. The post-2012 agreement should also incorporate predictable and legally binding commitments to address the adaptation needs of low-lying coastal states, small developing island and least-developed countries.
“The LDCs deserve special attention of the global community, due to their economic and climate vulnerabilities,” she said, adding that some US$ 2 billion would be required to implement adaptation programs in the LDCs over next five years.
“Sadly, the LDCs have so far received a meager US$ 172 million since its establishment. LDCs have hardly benefited from the Clean Development Mechanism. Additional funds should, therefore, be made available through Adaptation Fund,” Hasina said.
At the end of her speech, Sheikh Hasina commended the organizers for this initiative allowing them to address a critical gap in their approach to climate change. “The insights shared here would further contribute to the progress, for achieving the achievable in Copenhagen,” she hoped.
The Geneva Declaration would pave the way for a new World Climate Services System, she said.
“The success of the System would largely depend on international support and cooperation in enhancing the technological and service-delivery capacity of meteorological organizations of developing countries, especially the LDCs,” Hasina said.
To conclude with, the Prime Minister earnestly emphasized that a unanimous agreement here would empower Bangladesh and other countries to reverse the alarming climate trends, threatening the globe’s sheer existence.
“Devising collective strategies based on informed decisions can disprove the dire prognosis about our future. We must not fail delivering on the historic responsibility that we owe to our posterity,” she said.
At the very outset of her speech, the Bangladesh Prime Minister expressed her sincere thanks to the hosts and sponsors of the conference, including the world Metrological Organization (WMO), for their impeccable arrangements and for providing her opportunity to deliberate on the climate risk management and adaptation.
Sheikh Hasina said the freedom-loving people of Bangladesh who have been for years struggling against unconstitutional rule, on her return from forced exile, ultimately achieved democracy, with the universally acclaimed free, fair and credible parliamentary elections held on December 29, 2008.
“Ever since my father, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the Father of the Nation, was brutally murdered with eighteen members of our family, by a group of misguided military personnel on August 15, 1975, except for a brief period in the 90s, the country had been ruled by military dictators and quasi-dictators,” she said.
She said the nation has seen their failure to take the country forward on the road to progress, or improve the quality of life of the people, proving there is no alternative to democracy for leading a nation to its aspired goals.
Now, with the victorious return of democracy and a committed leadership, Bangladesh has earned the opportunity to move forward and realize ‘Sonar Bangla’ or “Golden Bengal” as was dreamt by the Father of the Nation.
“To achieve the noble goal, the people of Bangladesh and I urge all freedom-loving people of the world to rally behind us with sincere, wholehearted support,” she said.

Courtesy of UNB, Geneva