European Union to help build Bangladesh’s capacity to face climate change risks 

Bangladesh is one of the world’s “most vulnerable” countries to the impact of climate change, the EU ambassador in Dhaka has said.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 27 Oct 2015, 05:38 PM
Updated : 27 Oct 2015, 05:38 PM

Pierre Mayaudon said on Tuesday the impact was so devastating that international community received “even clearer and occasionally tragic translation” of climate change from Bangladesh.

“A key message that I wish to circulate again today is that Europe stands by the side of Bangladesh at this critical juncture,” he said, speaking at a high-level workshop on climate change in Dhaka ahead of Paris climate summit in December.

The 28-nation bloc is one of the largest development partners of Bangladesh.

The EU transfers funds and technical assistance to Bangladesh government and NGOs as part of its response in terms of both mitigation and adaptation.

The ambassador said they also mobilised regional funds such as those related to sustainable production and consumption for the benefit of Bangladesh.

A new 8 million Euro project for Bangladesh has just been approved in Brussels for providing support for enhancing communities' resilience to climate change and related disasters.

The EU also recently gave the government open access to space satellite images provided by the new EU earth observation system COPERNICUS free of cost.

One of the six missions of COPERNICUS is precisely to monitor the effects of climate change.

The ambassador said through “this cooperation that will include capacity building in terms of training of engineers and technicians, Bangladesh will be better equipped to face the challenges that we are discussing today”.

He said the European diplomats would make collective field visits soon to assess the impacts even more before the climate summit.

Senior government officials, representatives from the development partners, members of the diplomatic community and civil society were present.

The minister highlighted the need to adopt the right policies and adaptation measures to address vulnerability.

He also stressed on the importance of engaging communities in the sustainable management of resources and infrastructure, along with the critical need for enhanced regional cooperation.

Ambassador Mayaudon said this year was “a crucial year” for climate negotiations.

“To limit the global temperature rise to below 2°C, it is essential to secure a fair, ambitious and legally binding agreement at COP21 in Paris,” he said.

“We cannot just rely on their proverbial resilience to overcome the adverse impact of climate change,” he said.

“There are limits to all human qualities and virtues. It is our collective responsibility to make sure that this particular one is not crossed.”

The ambassador said timely “investment in low carbon, climate resilient development can generate jobs and growth”.