Bangladesh needed to invest approximately $ 12.5 billion in climate change adaptation over the midterm, or roughly 3% of its FY21 GDP, to sustain strong economic growth, said a recent report.
The financing for climate action can be raised through budget prioritization, carbon taxation, external financing, and private investment, it said.
The report titled “Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR) for Bangladesh” was released by the World Bank (WB) on Monday.
Planning Minister MA Mannan addressed the event as the chief guest while WB acting Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan Dandan Chen, World Bank Vice-President for South Asia Martin Raiser, WB Regional Director (South Asia Sustainable Development) John Roome, and others also spoke on the occasion.
According to the report, Bangladesh has significantly reduced disaster-related deaths over the years but continues to face severe and increasing disaster risks due to climate change.
Without urgent action, including further adaptation and resilience measures, the country’s strong growth potential could be at risk, it said.
Average tropical cyclones cost Bangladesh about $1 billion annually, while by 2050, a third of the agricultural GDP could be lost with 13 million people becoming internal climate migrants.
In the meantime, GDP could fall by as much as 9.0 per cent in case of severe flooding, the report noted.
WB Vice-President Raiser said that at just 0.4%, Bangladesh’s current contribution to global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions was not significant, but with the country’s large population and fast economic growth, GHG emissions will increase substantially.
The country also faces a high level of air pollution, which costs about 9% of GDP annually.
Planning Minister Mannan said Bangladesh was one of the early responders to climate change as it had created a climate fund with its own money.
The report recommends investments in infrastructure and services to strengthen climate resilience while supporting long-term growth.
Actions focused on improved agriculture productivity, energy and transport efficiency to lower future emissions intended to improve air, soil, and water quality.
It also said investments should be prioritized for climate hotspots such as in the Barind, coastal zones, haor areas, and Hill Tracts, and the regions facing higher poverty rates as well as natural hazards.