Bangladesh tells Parliament it has strengthened climate strategies through integrated policies, expanded adaptation programmes and improved access to global climate finance to boost resilience and support a low-carbon development pathway.
Against the backdrop of rising climate vulnerability, Bangladesh’s government on Wednesday told Parliament that it has put in place an expanded set of national policies, financing mechanisms and large-scale adaptation programmes to strengthen long-term climate resilience and accelerate low-carbon development.
Responding to a starred question in the Jatiya Sangsad, Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Abdul Awal Mintoo said the country is implementing an integrated climate governance framework combining adaptation, mitigation and international climate finance mobilisation.
The original question was submitted by independent lawmaker Rumeen Farhana and later raised in the House by independent MP Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Iqbal in her absence.
Integrated climate policy architecture
The minister said Bangladesh has developed a coordinated set of national strategies including the Locally Led Adaptation Framework (LLAF), the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), designed to ensure both grassroots participation and alignment with global climate commitments.
He added that the Long-Term Low Emission Development Strategy (LT-LEDS) is also being prepared to guide Bangladesh’s transition toward a sustainable low-carbon development pathway.
These initiatives, he said, are being implemented through relevant ministries and agencies under a unified national approach while ensuring stronger coordination between adaptation and mitigation planning.
Climate finance and international cooperation
Highlighting financial mobilisation efforts, Mintoo said the government has established the Bangladesh Climate Development Partnership (BCDP) to strengthen project preparation, improve coordination with development partners and enhance access to international climate finance.
He also noted that Bangladesh is preparing to engage more actively in carbon markets under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement through a newly developed regulatory framework aimed at ensuring transparency in both voluntary and international carbon trading systems.
Large-scale adaptation actions
As part of immediate interventions, the government has launched a 180-day nationwide programme covering multiple regions including Brahmanbaria. The initiative includes forest restoration in degraded public forest areas, mangrove afforestation in coastal zones and the plantation of 15 million saplings along roads, highways, embankments, rivers, canals and marginal lands.
The minister said these interventions are designed to strengthen ecosystem-based adaptation while improving local resilience to floods, cyclones and land degradation.
Climate finance and project implementation
Mintoo said Bangladesh has continued to finance large-scale adaptation through the Bangladesh Climate Change Trust Fund (CCTF), established under the Bangladesh Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan (2009).
From FY 2009–10 to 2025–26, the government allocated Tk 4,151.71 crore to the fund. As of March 2026, a total of Tk 4,383.95 crore has been earmarked for 985 projects including 924 government-led and 61 NGO-led initiatives.
Of these, 828 projects have been completed while 153 remain under implementation, all executed at district and upazila levels to expand local resilience capacity.
Long-term commitment
Responding to a supplementary question from Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Iqbal, the minister stressed that climate change is a gradual process requiring sustained and continuous action.
“The adverse impacts cannot be mitigated overnight. Our efforts will continue in a planned and sustained manner,” he said, adding that new strategies will be introduced as climate risks evolve.
