PM's Financial Times article advocates a 'cleaner, greener, safer world'
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said climate change, pandemic and the destruction of nature are common threats and these should unite all in working towards a common solution -- a cleaner, greener and safer world.
"As we say in Bangla: 'Bhabia korio kaj, koria bhabio na' (think before you act, not after you're done), we should not do anything that cannot be reversed," she mentioned in her recent article published in the Financial Times, one of the world's most respected newspapers with its editorial offices located in London, although it was purchased by Japan's Nikkei Inc. in 2015.
"My country is a land of great rivers, vast coastlines and resilient people. But 2020 has been a test for us like no other," the prime minister wrote mentioning that in May, cyclone Amphan left a trail of devastation in its path in the south-western parts and then monsoon rains marooned one-third of the country, leaving thousands of people displaced and damaging vast tracts of crops.
When water batters through someone's house, destroying his or her possessions, leaving pollution and disease in its way, it is tough, she wrote.
"It is doubly tough in a year when Covid-19 has struck, making it difficult to access clean water vital for sanitation and pandemic prevention," the article reads.
She wrote, "As I write in Dhaka, the waters of the Brahmaputra and Padma basins are receding. My people are getting their lives back, albeit under the shadow of coronavirus."
"As ever, they are drawing up plans to ensure we are better prepared in the future, because in Bangladesh there is always a next time. The climate crisis does not sleep," she added.
She warned the countries that feel they are immune to the climate crisis, bankers and financiers who feel they can escape it. "You cannot. Covid-19 has shown that no country or business can survive alone. Only together can we tackle global crises. It has also demonstrated that prevention is easier than cure. That makes 2020 the year we must commit to listen to scientists."
The prime minister mentioned that we face a planetary emergency, a triple crisis of climate, health and nature. "Biodiversity loss is accelerated by climate change and exacerbates it."
Climate change stems from the lack of sustainability of human activities, reads the article. "We are experiencing floods, rainfalls, cyclones, heatwaves, landslides and droughts in recent years with more fury and intensity, which also endanger food security. We need to recognise their gravity."
A metre rise in sea level will inundate numerous small islands and coastal nations, she mentioned.
G20 countries are responsible for about 80 percent of emissions while the bottom 100 countries only account for 3.5 percent, the prime minister wrote.
The emitters have greater responsibility and must make larger contributions through the mitigation needed to cap the global temperature rise at 1.5C.
"As the current president of the Climate Vulnerable Forum, Bangladesh is seeking more support from the international community and the G20 for increased finance and access to technology to speed adaptation for those countries most at risk," the article reads.
In that group, Bangladesh is one of the best prepared for extreme weather.
"We are building sea walls, planting mangrove forests, embedding resilience in all governmental work."
"But we cannot walk this journey alone. Sixty-four countries and the EU have this week signed the Pledge for Nature to respond to the planetary emergency. They represent around 1.4bn people and one-quarter of global gross domestic product. From there, we need to build common political will at domestic and global level," the article reads.
As hosts of the next COP, G7 and G20 meetings, the UK and Italy must drive this agenda, which requires a comprehensive support package for hardest hit nations, the PM suggested.
"You may believe your bottom line is quarterly results. But our common bottom line is far more important: if nature is degraded to the extent it cannot protect us, we will all suffer. What happens in Bangladesh affects stocks in London and New York," the prime minister wrote.
She said no one is immune to sea level rise and the only cure is a systemic shift in government policy and business practice, from high to low carbon, from exploitation of the planet to care.
A recent analysis by Vivid Economics of the response to Covid-19 suggests that its impact on climate change has been mixed. "I salute the EU for prioritising a green recovery."
"We plan to do the same in Bangladesh, and I fervently hope my fellow government leaders as well as business leaders will as well. Jobs must be a priority, but so too are the jobs of the future and building solid foundations for decades to come," the article reads.
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