Shahiduzzaman Khan in the Financial Express (Bangladesh): Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina recently requested the donors for quick disbursement of the climate change adaptation and mitigation fund to counter the adverse impact of the changing climate on Bangladesh. The country needs such funds quickly promised in the COP-15 summit in Copenhagen in December last for adaptation and mitigation, particularly for least developed countries (LDCs) and low lying coastal countries.In Dhaka, the donors were briefed about Bangladesh government's stance on facing the changing climate saying that Bangladesh had already taken different types of measures for environmental action to mitigate the adverse impact of the climate change. But it is now apparent that the donors were not providing assistance to the projects requiring big scale investments. They are giving funds for technical studies and planning only.
Addressing a recent meeting, Finance Minister AMA Muhith criticised the development partners for meager disbursement of Global Environment Facility (GEF) funds. He said the country needs substantial investment to adequately take care of the effluents and solid waste. These are all environment-friendly projects and the government sought funds from development partners for setting up effluent treatment plants.
….Bangladesh has sought funds for 12 different projects including reopening of jute mills shut down earlier. GEF, a multi-donor trust fund, finances government environmental projects having trans-boundary environmental impacts. It funds projects related to biodiversity, climate change, international waters, land degradation, the ozone layer, and persistent organic pollutants -- through World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and different United Nations organs like UNDP, UNEP and FAO….
From Bangladesh, a traditional Nakshi kantha, Wikimedia Commons
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