Bangladesh will focus on 4 areas in Biden's climate summit
Bangladesh considers that taking various measures including reduction of global warming is very important for the continuity of development and protection of the world from the risk of climate change.
That is why foreign ministry officials said priority will be given to four issues related to Bangladesh in the virtual climate summit to be hosted by US president Joe Biden.
Prime minister Sheikh Hasina will address the summit as one of the top 40 world leaders. As the head of the country that is now the chair of Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF), she will raise the expectations of Bangladesh and other 47 CVF member countries.
After taking over, US president Joe Biden brought his country back to the Paris Agreement on climate. Days later, he announced that he will host the Leaders Summit on Climate on April 22 and 23. World leaders will underscore the urgency of stronger climate action and its economic benefits. The summit is being considered as key milestone ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) this November in Glasgow.
Other than prime minister Sheikh Hasina, Russian president Vladimir Putin, China president Xi Jinping, German chancellor Angela Merkel, France president Emmanuel Macron, UK prime minister Boris Johnson, Saudi Arabia King Salman bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, Indian prime minister Narendra Modi, Turkey president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, among other, will join the summit.
The US special presidential envoy for climate, John Kerry, came to Dhaka on 9 April to invite prime minister Sheikh Hasina to the summit.
Officials at the foreign ministry said on Tuesday Bangladesh will give priority on four issues in the summit. These are: achieving the goal to limit global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius, allocating the USD100 billion climate funds equally for risk mitigation and adaptation, investing on creative climate change projects by countries with big economy and international financing organisations and exchange of environment-friendly technology.
What does Bangladesh actually mean by the exchange of environment-friendly and fuel-efficient technology?
In reply to this query, a senior official told this correspondent that Bangladesh has recently purchased 40 state-of-the-art diesel-run railway engines from the USA. These engines are more environment-friendly and energy-efficient.
Electric vehicle will be the main mode of environment-friendly transportation in future. In addition to this, Bangladesh wants cooperation from developed countries including the USA on various issues including environment-friendly energy generation, power grid connection and roads and rail connectivity.
Which issues Bangladesh will give priorities in the summit. In reply to this query, foreign secretary Masud Bin Momen told Prothom Alo on Sunday that Bangladesh has many successes in tackling the risk of climate change. Now Bangladesh is the chair of CVF. So, Bangladesh will raise the issues of international initiative and assistance on behalf of itself and other 47 CVF member countries.
Masud Bin Momen further said Bangladesh thinks that a half of the proposed global USD100 billion climate funds should be allocated for risk mitigation and another half for adaptation.
Bangladesh will raise the issue on maintaining a logical balance in the risk mitigation and the adaptation in successfully tackling the risk caused by climate change. Besides, Bangladesh will also highlight the issues including exchange of technology and financing in the creative projects, Momen added.
*This report appeared in the print and online edition of Prothom Alo and has been rewritten in English by Hasanul Banna