Former United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon today said Bangladesh is the best teacher in climate change adaptation.

Ban Ki-moon said this while addressing the inaugural ceremony of a two-day international conference on climate change adaptation in Dhaka.

"We are here to learn from Bangladesh's experiences and vision, when it comes to adaptation, our best teachers are opened doors who are on the front lines of climate change," Moon said.

A few countries have more to teach the rest of the world than Bangladesh, Bangladesh is thus is the best teacher to learn about the adaptation, he said.

"If sea levels were to rise by just one metre, 17% of the country (Bangladesh) would be under water by 2050, he said.

"According to the IPCC, Dhaka itself could be engulfed by even or slight rise in sea level," he added.

While the rest of the world debate climate change, for Bangladesh adapting to a warmer, more violent, less predictable climate is a matter of absolute survival, he said.      

Marshall Islands President Hilda Heine, World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva and Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina spoke on the occasion among other distinguished guests at a Dhaka hotel this morning.

Former United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon, Marshall Islands President Hilda Heine and Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina meet at a lounge at Hotel InterContinental in Dhaka on Wednesday, July 10, 2019. Photo: PID

Bangladesh will showcase its good practices on climate change adaption initiatives like water resilient crops, home solar system and climate trust fund. 

The meeting will prepare a set of recommendations on climate change adaptation for placing it before the UN in September.

During their stay here, the international dignitaries are scheduled to visit the Rohingya camps in Cox's Bazar to see environmental degradation caused by the Rohingya influx and settlement.