Climate crisis in Bangladesh

In an exclusive interview with Yeni Şafak at COP31, Dr. Saimum Parvez, Special Assistant to Bangladesh’s PM on Environment, said Bangladesh is one of the most climate-vulnerable countries in the world, with floods, cyclones and other disasters a regular occurrence, which puts the summit at the centre of the country’s priorities.

He said Bangladesh is pressing three demands at the summit. The first, raised by the Prime Minister in his national statement, is to increase the adaptation fund by up to 50 percent. The second is that climate finance for vulnerable countries should be built on grants and concessional lending, not ordinary loans. The third is climate justice and a just transition from a fossil fuel-based economy to one based on renewable energy.

On relations with Ankara, Parvez described Türkiye as “one of our closest partners” and said the Prime Minister had held meetings with the country’s top leadership. He said Bangladesh wants to expand cooperation in trade and in climate projects.