COP27: Bangladesh wants climate finance doubled by 2025

Bangladesh has demanded that developed countries double their collective provision of adaptation finance by 2025, as was agreed at COP26 in Glasgow last year, and provide support to vulnerable countries to implement the National Adaptation Plan (NAP).

Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Shahab Uddin placed this demand while reading out Bangladesh's national statement at COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt yesterday evening.

He said the countries most responsible for greenhouse gas emissions should share responsibility for protecting the people vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.

In the statement, the minister said, "At this COP27, it is essential that we make progress in addressing the gap that exists between nationally determined contributions announced by different countries and emission reductions required by science to keep global temperature rise within 1.5 degrees Celsius."

Also, finalising the mitigation work programme is crucial to reduce global carbon emissions by 45 percent by 2030 to keep the global average temperature rise within 1.5 degrees Celsius, the minister added.

The minister said Bangladesh is an innocent victim of climate change as the country contributes less than 0.48 percent of global emissions.

Studies show that about 12-17 percent of Bangladesh, an area larger than many small island countries, will be submerged due to sea level rise by the end of this century.

Bangladesh submitted the NAP to United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) on October 31 this year.

"In our NAP, we have identified 113 actions for eight vulnerable sectors that will require an additional $230 billion to implement those in the next 27 years (2023-2050)," the minister said.

Bangladesh implemented 850 projects with its own resources to make the country climate resilient in the last one decade, he said.

The country's annual allocation for climate-related work had to increase by two and a half over the last eight years from $1.4 billion to $3.1 billion for climate adaptation and resilience-building through the construction of sea dykes, cyclone shelters, development of stress-tolerant varieties and coastal afforestation and reforestation, the minister added.

He demanded different heads of states and governments to ensure mobilisation of annual $100 billion annually for the Global Climate Fund from this year till 2025, and finalise the finance mechanism for the post-2025 era.

Also, the minister demanded establishing a financial mechanism for addressing loss and damage due to climate change.

"We want to see the developed countries keep their commitments providing $100 billion annually ... a major portion of which should come from the public funds dedicated to climate change adaptation," the minister said in the statement.

Top officials from Bangladesh delegations were present at the press conference.

By The Daily Star