Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina delivered her four-point recommendation focusing on regional partnerships and cooperation, as well as climate finance and knowledge and technology-transfer to new developing countries, in a video message to the 79th Session of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP).
The 79th session of UNESCAP convened Monday with a call for accelerating climate action in Asia and the Pacific for sustainable development.
The session brings together government leaders from across Asia and the Pacific and other key stakeholders to discuss policy options and areas of regional cooperation required to accelerate climate action in the region and beyond.
The Bangladesh prime minister’s pre-recorded video message was played in the Leaders’ Segment. Sheikh Hasina urged UNESCAP to ‘consolidate regional partnerships’ to fight the perilous threats posed by climate change, and make the world a safer and better place for future generations.
She reiterated that climate-vulnerable developing countries, especially in Asia and the Pacific, require adequate finances to implement not only their National Action Plan, but also to attain their Nationally-Determined Contribution (NDC) targets submitted before the UN.
In this regard, the prime minister emphasised ‘International Support Measures’, including knowledge sharing, technology transfer, and innovation-driven trade and investment, for a transition towards climate-resilient growth for the graduating countries, i.e. countries like Bangladesh who are graduating out of the list of Least Developed Countries. The prime minister in the past has raised the point that graduating out of such a grouping should not bring hardship or punishment, in the form of say, reduced benefits or increased tariffs.
To deal with the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) and mitigate the challenges of climate change, she stressed on the availability of trade facilitation measures, digital trade, and IT-enabled services in developing countries.
To promote climate actions for sustainable development in Asia and the Pacific, the prime minister suggested that sub-regional cooperation should be strengthened, especially in accelerating existing partnerships and developing new partnerships.
With dedicated discussions on catalysing climate finance and investments, complemented by a climate solution fair, the 79th UNESCAP Session will allow for identifying opportunities, sharing solutions, and facilitating engagement of a broad set of partners and stakeholders, to both reduce the risks and impacts of climate change and foster ambitious climate action in Asia and the Pacific towards net-zero pathways and limit global temperature rise to no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius.
A 13-member Bangladesh delegation led by the Economic Relations Division (ERD) secretary Sharifa Khan is participating in the Commission Session both online and in-person and contributing to the session by projecting Bangladesh’s positions in different agenda items and the Commission’s outcome.
During the inaugural session on Monday, the ambassador and PR of Bangladesh to UNESCAP Mohammed Abdul Hye, and Alternate and Deputy Permanent Representatives from the Embassy were present in person, while other members of the delegation attended virtually.