Bangladesh is preparing an expert panel under the environment ministry to strengthen climate, environment and forest policy, support international negotiations and provide research-based advice on long-term planning and cooperation efforts.
Bangladesh is moving to form an expert panel under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change to strengthen policy-making on climate change, environmental protection, to strengthen Bangladesh’s position at the international level and forest management, officials said.
Dr. Saimum Parvez, special assistant to the Prime Minister on environment, forest and climate change, said a framework for the proposed panel was nearing completion.
He said the panel would include environmentalists, climate negotiators, environmental scientists, university teachers, civil society representatives and youth climate activists with long experience in national and international climate and environmental work.
Parvez disclosed the plan at a meeting of Bangladeshi delegates in Bonn, Germany, where international climate talks are underway.
He said the initiative was being taken to help Bangladesh better address the adverse impacts of climate change, protect its interests in global climate negotiations and respond more effectively to environmental challenges.
The proposed panel is expected to support long-term planning in the country’s environment and climate sectors, provide research-based policy advice and help expand international cooperation, he said.
Officials said the panel would bring together experienced professionals from different fields to advise the ministry on key policy and negotiation issues at a time when Bangladesh faces growing climate risks, including coastal erosion, salinity intrusion, floods, cyclones and biodiversity loss.
Bangladesh, one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change, has long called for stronger global action on adaptation finance, loss and damage, and climate justice.
