Bangladesh should lead climate vulnerable nations towards attaining carbon neutral economy: Experts

Bangladesh should lead countries vulnerable to climate change towards achieving carbon neutral economy by 2050.

The Center for Participatory Research and Development, Climate Action Network South Asia, and CAN International at a virtual press event on Thursday emphasised the need for dynamic leadership of Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as the chair of Climate Vulnerable Forum to lead 48 vulnerable countries in Biden's Climate Suga Summit in April and the 26th climate conference at the end of this year.

Presenting the keynote speech, Md. Shamsuddoha, chief executive of the Centre for Participatory Research, highlighted the importance of full implantation of the Paris Climate Agreement, specifically emphasising the overarching goal of limiting global average temperature rise well below 2 degree Celsius from the pre-industrial era.

He asked Bangladesh's political leaderships to undertake enhanced targets of carbon emission reduction under Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), national plans on climate actions, and persuade other countries into making their NDCs progressive and aligningthem with the Paris Agreement.

Alongside the carbon emission reduction, Shamsuddoha insisted on resilience building, addressing the loss and damages, and fulfillingthe developed countries' commitmentto annually provide$100 billion tomitigate climate change.

Syed Jahangir Hasan Masum, executive director of the CDP, said that if Bangladesh wanted to achieve non-binding targets of NDC, it would have to incorporate people in the process.

"There is no scope ofisolating the current development from the NDC process."

Quamrul Islam Chowdhury, president, Forum of Environmental Journalists of Bangladesh, said, "We see NDC as a national document where few relevant ministries have possibly been involved but civil society organisations were yet to be incorporated in the process."

The people working at the ground level, active researchers, and the communities that are bearing the brunt of climate change have not been engaged in the NDC process, said Nikhil Chandra Bhadra, senior reporter of Bangla daily Kalerkontho. 

Fazle Rabbi Sadeque Ahmed, director, climate change of the Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation, said high carbon-emitting nations had apathy in enhancing NDC. Many of them were seen to submit the previous version of NDC, which is a big concern.

Bangladesh's NDC 2020 include ensuring participation of a broad range of stakeholders and participation and ownership of other relevant ministries;establishing an inter-ministerial steering committee for NDC preparation and implementation;ensuring that NDCs are aligned with other national plans and policies and vice versa and a formal discussion on or vetting of the NDC in the national parliament;quantifying the emission reduction targets and ensuring proper reporting on the implementation.