New UN protocol demanded

Speakers at a seminar yesterday urged the government to demand a new UN protocol for climate induced displacement in the World Humanitarian Summit to be held in Istanbul on May 23-24.

Bangladesh, a low-lying deltaic country, is currently facing many climate change related challenges like sea-level rise, floods, drought, cyclone, saline inoculation, river bank and coastal erosion and water-logging, they said.

According to the Earth Policy Institute, 1m rise in sea level will lead to landlessness of 14.8 million people, 29,846 sq km area of land will be lost and 40 million people will be displaced.

Twelve civil society organisations and networks facilitated by COAST organised the seminar "Setting Agenda for World Humanitarian Summit Istanbul: Climate Induced Displacement, Humanitarian and Right Perspectives" in the capital's Cirdap auditorium.

The co-organisers were Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (Bapa), Bangladesh Indigenous Peoples Network on Climate Change and Biodiversity, EquityBD and COAST, among others.

French Ambassador Sophie Aubert spoke as the chief guest with Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF) Chairman Dr Qazi Kholiquzzaman in the chair.

"The displacement is happening because of human error," she said.