Char area displacement should be top priority: Economist Kholiquzzaman

There is an urgent need to prioritise efforts to address displacement, particularly in the vulnerable char areas of Bangladesh, said renowned economist Dr Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad.

He shared the view during a workshop titled "Avert and Minimize Displacement" held in the special seminar room of Nabab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Bhaban at the Dhaka University today.

Stressing on the pressing nature of the displacement issue, Qazi Kholiquzzaman, chairman of the governing council at the Dhaka School of Economics, said, "Many initiatives are in place regarding displacement in Bangladesh, but there is no priority set on those plans. Char areas should be given top priority in displacement-related initiatives as they are the most vulnerable."

The workshop was organised by  Refugee and Migratory Movements Research Unit (RMMRU) under the "Pilot Assessment and Interventions to Avert, Minimize Displacement in Climate Stressed Districts of Bangladesh Project" with the support of Platform on Disaster Displacement (PDD) and Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD). The workshop was managed by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

Addressing the workshop as the president, Qazi Kholiquzzaman further said, "The issue of displacement should have been presented in the Paris Agreement. Instead, it has been under loss and damage. In this case, adequate funding for the displaced people will not be possible."

He also said, "In the National Strategy on Internal Displacement Management, 2021, there is provision for the participation of the beneficiaries, but in practice, they have little opportunity to participate in the projects." 

"No project can achieve its intended goals without the participation of the concerned community," he added.

While speaking as the chief guest, State Minister of the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief Md Mohibbur Rahman, said, "The government is committed to ensure the participation of the displaced people with the original population in the development process of the country. For this purpose, various activities will be implemented through the Directorate of Disaster Management."

Tanveer Shakeel Joy, in his special guest speech, also demanded that the people of char regions should be prioritised in the rehabilitation of displaced persons.

International Organization for Migration (IOM) Bangladesh Mission Chief Abdusattor Esoev highlighted the need for data collection on the resettlement of displaced populations. 

He said that IOM was working with various organisations of the Bangladesh government to collect this data.

Dr Tasnim Siddiqui, chairperson of Dhaka University Political Science Department and founding chair of RMMRU, said, "To resettle the displaced people, it is necessary to create community-based institutions in addition to housing them. With support from PDD and NORAD, the main objective of the project to implement the national strategy paper 2021 undertaken by IOM, RMMRU and ICAD, is to move towards development by involving the displaced."

The workshop was also attended by representatives of the displaced people from Satkhira, Fatema Khatun and Md Shahidul Islam. Director General of Disaster Management Department Md Mizanur Rahman, Prof Mizan R Khan, joint secretaries of the nine ministries and representatives of development cooperation institutions were also present in the workshop.