[🇧🇩] Save the Rivers/Forests/Hills-----Save the Environment

[Saif]

A rain-soaked July is over. Now Bangladesh faces a hotter August

BMD forecasts near-normal rainfall but warns of heatwaves, rising rivers and possible regional flooding

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A rain-soaked July is over. Now Bangladesh faces a hotter August

Mostafa Shabuj

Bangladesh recorded 35.6 percent higher-than-normal rainfall in July due to active monsoon winds, low-pressure systems and depressions, according to the latest long-term weather report released by the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) today.

In its forecast for August, the BMD predicted near-normal overall rainfall across the country, alongside above-normal day and night temperatures, isolated mild-to-moderate heatwaves and the possibility of short-term flooding in several regions.

According to the report, Bangladesh received an average of 666mm of rainfall in July, well above the normal monthly average of 457mm.

The country also experienced an average of 25 rainy days during the month, compared with the normal monthly average of 21 days.

Except for Mymensingh, where rainfall remained close to normal with a marginal negative deviation of 0.05 percent, recording 437mm over 27 days, all other divisions experienced above-normal precipitation.

According to the report, Bangladesh received an average of 666mm of rainfall in July, well above the normal monthly average of 457mm. File Photo

Khulna recorded the highest increase in rainfall, receiving 554mm over 23 days, or 53 percent above normal. Chattogram followed with 1,047mm over 26 days, 51 percent above normal, while Sylhet recorded 736mm over 28 days, 37.3 percent above normal.

Dhaka received 495mm of rainfall over 25 days, 33.4 percent above normal. Rangpur recorded 472mm over 27 days, 15.4 percent above normal, Rajshahi received 354mm over 26 days, 13.6 percent above normal, and Barishal logged 602mm over 26 days, 12.6 percent above normal.

BMD attributed the excessive rainfall to three low-pressure systems that formed over the Bay of Bengal during July, two of which intensified into depressions.

The highest single-day rainfall during the month was recorded at Ambagan in Chattogram, where 329mm of rain fell on July 8.

The country's highest temperature in July was 37.6 degrees Celsius, recorded in Rangpur.

Following a meeting of its expert committee chaired by BMD Director Md Mominul Islam today, the department forecast near-normal rainfall across the country in August.

The committee predicted that one to two monsoon low-pressure systems may form over the Bay of Bengal during the month, with one likely to intensify into a depression.

Both day- and night-time temperatures are expected to remain above the normal monthly averages. The BMD also forecast that one or two isolated mild (36.0°C to 37.9°C) to moderate (38.0°C to 39.9°C) heatwaves may sweep across parts of the country.

BMD also forecast that one or two isolated mild (36.0°C to 37.9°C) to moderate (38.0°C to 39.9°C) heatwaves may sweep across parts of the country. Photo: Firoz Ahmed

Water levels in the country's major river systems are likely to rise during the month. Owing to heavy seasonal rainfall, short-term flood situations may develop in the northern, north-eastern and south-eastern regions of Bangladesh.

In its three-month outlook for August to October 2026, also released today, the BMD forecast below-normal rainfall over the period.

During these three months, the Bay of Bengal may witness four to six low-pressure systems, of which two to three could intensify into depressions.

The department also forecast thunderstorms on 10 to 15 days during the period, while isolated mild-to-moderate heatwaves may occur four to six times.

Daytime and night-time temperatures are expected to remain generally above normal throughout the late monsoon period.​

 

[Saif]

Clean and healthy rivers are the key

Asia and the Pacific's food story has always been a water story. From the Indus to the Mekong, the Yellow River to the Ganges, rivers have shaped civilizations, nourished crops, and powered trade. That relationship is under strain. The region is home to over half the world's people but holds far l

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Clean and healthy rivers are the key

Transformation of Asia's food systems

A dredging vessel works on Padma river in Shariatpur district, Bangladesh on May 27, 2019 —Xinhua Photo


Asia and the Pacific's food story has always been a water story.

From the Indus to the Mekong, the Yellow River to the Ganges, rivers have shaped civilizations, nourished crops, and powered trade. That relationship is under strain. The region is home to over half the world's people but holds far less than its share of freshwater. Demand is rising, even as rivers, aquifers, and ecosystems face mounting stress.

Food security begins long before food reaches the table. The region feeds more than 4 billion people using just 28 per cent of global freshwater and 30 per cent of arable land. Yet, more than three-quarters of the region's land experiences water stress. Rice-the predominant staple-uses about 40 per cent of irrigation water, and almost half of cropland is degraded, undermining productivity and ecological resilience.

In six decades, Asia and the Pacific experienced three waves of transformation. The Green Revolution doubled cereal yields in countries such as India and Indonesia. Rural industrialisation connected farms to processing and markets. Globalisation turned Thailand and Viet Nam into major agricultural exporters.

These shifts slashed hunger-but generated hidden costs. South Asia now hosts some of the world's most groundwater-stressed basins. Fertiliser use in parts of East and Southeast Asia more than quadrupled since the 1970s, polluting rivers and creating coastal dead zones. Diets have narrowed toward calorie sufficiency rather than nutritional diversity.

A changing climate compounds these pressures. Glaciers in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan region, which supplies water to almost 2 billion people, are retreating rapidly-a third could disappear this century. After a period of higher flows driven by accelerated melting, river volumes will likely decline in arid months. Meanwhile, rainfall grows more erratic. In 2022 and 2023, floods across Pakistan, India, and parts of Southeast Asia caused billions of dollars in losses, while droughts reduced agricultural output in Central and West Asia.

Agriculture itself is intensifying river stress. Heavy fertiliser and pesticide use leads to nutrient runoff and contamination. Soil erosion from steep-slope farming reduces reservoir storage and irrigation reliability. Groundwater extraction in parts of India, Pakistan, and northern People's Republic of China now exceeds natural recharge rates.

The cycle is clear: degraded rivers undermine agriculture; unsustainable agriculture degrades rivers.

River systems do not follow borders; they connect mountain headwaters to deltas and farms to fisheries.

Breaking that cycle requires managing food systems at the scale at which water flows-across landscapes and river basins. River systems do not follow borders; they connect mountain headwaters to deltas and farms to fisheries. Monitoring glacier melt, for example, enables governments to anticipate seasonal river flows so farmers downstream can adjust crops and irrigation schedules. Restoring upstream forests reduces floods and sediment loads, protecting irrigation and hydropower infrastructure. Wetland restoration buffers storm surges while sustaining farming and fisheries.

Water must also be valued as natural capital. Water-related disasters account for nearly 75 per cent of natural disaster losses. When aquifers collapse or river water becomes unsafe, economic shocks ripple across agriculture, health, and industry. Incorporating ecosystem services into planning-through natural capital accounting, smarter pricing, and better incentives-aligns growth with sustainability.

Four shifts are essential.

First, move from yield maximisation to systems optimisation. The goal is to grow food in ways that conserve water, protect soil, diversify crops, and improve diets. Drip irrigation, for instance, can reduce water use by 30 to 50 per cent while significantly increasing yields for certain high-value crops. In South Asia, farmers shifting from water-intensive rice to diversified horticulture have raised incomes while easing pressure on groundwater.

Governments must coordinate policies. Water, agriculture, health, and environment ministries often operate independently. Unsafe water and poor sanitation spread disease and reduce nutrient absorption, stunting the growth of children. Over half of all stunted children live in Asia and the Pacific. Aligning fertiliser subsidies with water-quality standards and nutrition strategies can improve farm productivity, protect rivers, and strengthen human capital.

We need to transition from short-term projects to long-term, programmatic investment. Multi-year initiatives that combine irrigation modernisation, watershed restoration, digital water monitoring, and climate adaptation deliver more durable resilience than isolated infrastructure projects. Integrated river basin programs in the Mekong and South Asia show how upstream data and downstream investments can be coordinated to reduce flood risk and stabilise agricultural output.

Finally, embed inclusion. Women make up a substantial share of the region's agricultural workforce yet often lack authority over water management. Evidence from farmer-managed irrigation systems shows that when women participate in water scheduling and fee collection, maintenance improves and irrigation coverage expands. Inclusion strengthens both equity and system performance.

Securing water is inseparable from improving nutrition. Clean and reliable water enables production of fruits, vegetables, and protein sources essential to healthy diets.

The future of food in Asia and the Pacific flows through its rivers. To secure that future, we must treat rivers as economic assets and manage and restore landscapes as living systems.

The direction is clear: transforming food systems begins with restoring and sustaining clean, healthy rivers.

Qingfeng Zhang is Asian Development Bank (ADB) Country Director for Bangladesh.​

 

[Saif]

A new frontier for Bangladesh's green economy

Bangladesh is widely recognized as one of the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Cyclones, floods, river erosion, salinity intrusion, and frequent heat waves continue to place mounting pressure on the country's economy and the livelihoods of millions. Yet Bangladesh contributes less

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A new frontier for Bangladesh's green economy

The Sundarbans, the country's mangrove forest, helps Bangladesh reduce the carbon emissions to a large extent.
Bangladesh is widely recognized as one of the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Cyclones, floods, river erosion, salinity intrusion, and frequent heat waves continue to place mounting pressure on the country's economy and the livelihoods of millions. Yet Bangladesh contributes less than one per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions. This stark imbalance underscores the importance of climate justice. At the same time, it presents an opportunity to transform climate action from a development challenge into an economic opportunity. Among the most promising avenues is carbon trading.

Carbon trading is a market-based mechanism that assigns economic value to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. When a country, company, or project successfully lowers or removes carbon emissions beyond established benchmarks, it can generate carbon credits. These credits can then be sold to governments or businesses seeking to offset their emissions or meet climate commitments. In simple terms, environmental stewardship becomes a source of financial return. As both voluntary and compliance carbon markets continue to expand worldwide, carbon trading is emerging as an integral component of the global green economy.

For Bangladesh, the prospects are particularly encouraging. The country possesses significant untapped potential to develop internationally recognized carbon credit projects across multiple sectors. Renewable energy initiatives, especially solar power, biogas plants, energy-efficient brick kilns, industrial energy efficiency improvements, sustainable waste management, climate-smart agriculture, and social forestry all offer viable pathways for reducing emissions while creating tradable carbon assets.

Bangladesh's forests also represent an important opportunity. The country's mangrove ecosystems, coastal green belts, and community forestry programmes play a critical role in carbon sequestration. The Sundarbans, the world's largest mangrove forest, is not only an ecological treasure and a UNESCO World Heritage Site but also one of the region's most valuable natural carbon sinks. Through rigorous scientific assessment, conservation, and sustainable forest expansion aligned with international standards, Bangladesh could generate substantial carbon credits while simultaneously protecting biodiversity and strengthening climate resilience.

At the same time, global climate policies are reshaping international trade. The European Union's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) currently applies to carbon-intensive sectors such as cement, steel, aluminium, fertilizers, electricity, and hydrogen. Although Bangladesh's ready-made garment sector is not yet covered, the EU's broader sustainability agenda-including its 2030 industrial strategy, sustainable textiles policy, and supply-chain decarbonization initiatives-signals that stricter environmental requirements for textile and apparel exports are likely in the coming years.

While there has been no final decision to impose carbon tariffs on garments, many policy experts anticipate that between 2028 and 2030 manufacturers may face mandatory carbon reporting, product carbon footprint disclosure, and more stringent environmental transparency requirements. For Bangladesh, whose economy relies heavily on garment exports, preparing for this transition is no longer optional-it is a strategic necessity.

Encouragingly, many Bangladeshi garment manufacturers have already invested in green factories, rooftop solar systems, energy-efficient technologies, water conservation measures, and waste recycling. These investments not only enhance environmental performance but also position the industry to participate in international carbon markets. If properly certified, such initiatives could generate additional revenue through carbon credits while strengthening the country's competitiveness in an increasingly sustainability-driven global marketplace.

Despite these opportunities, significant challenges remain. Participation in carbon markets requires robust systems for measuring, reporting, and verifying (MRV) emission reductions, supported by reliable data, internationally-accredited verification procedures, skilled professionals, and strong institutional capacity. Bangladesh has made progress, but these capabilities remain limited. Moreover, the costs associated with project registration, certification, and compliance with international standards can be prohibitive, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Policy coordination is equally critical. Developing a successful carbon market will require close collaboration among the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, the Ministry of Industries, the Ministry of Finance, and the private sector. Bangladesh must also establish a transparent, accountable, and internationally credible national carbon market framework aligned with Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, which provides the legal basis for international carbon trading and cooperation.

Global investors are increasingly directing capital toward low-carbon and climate-resilient projects. If Bangladesh acts decisively by strengthening its policy framework, building technical expertise, and fostering international partnerships, carbon trading could become more than just a new source of foreign exchange earnings. It could accelerate sustainable development, create green jobs, facilitate technology transfer, attract climate finance, and enhance the country's long-term economic resilience.

Bangladesh has long been viewed primarily as a victim of climate change. The time has come to redefine that narrative. By embracing carbon trading, the country has an opportunity to become an active contributor to global climate solutions while advancing its own development objectives. With sound policies, scientific preparedness, and timely investment, today's climate initiatives can lay the foundation for tomorrow's green economy.

Carbon trading is not merely an environmental instrument; it is an economic opportunity for which the time has arrived.​

 

[Saif]

Can Buriganga with Dhaka be brought back to life?

During a meeting on improving the water quality and environment of Buriganga River held at the Cabinet Division conference room of the Bangladesh Secretariat recently, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman directed the authorities concerned to prepare a time-bound action plan against pollution in the Burig

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Can Buriganga with Dhaka be brought back to life?

During a meeting on improving the water quality and environment of Buriganga River held at the Cabinet Division conference room of the Bangladesh Secretariat recently, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman directed the authorities concerned to prepare a time-bound action plan against pollution in the Buriganga and the other rivers surrounding Dhaka. The directive also envisages an inter-agency committee under the supervision of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO). The Department of Environment (DoE), Dhaka WASA, Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB), RAJUK, the two city corporations and district administration are to work together. Industrial effluents, poor sewerage and drainage, shrinking canals and mismanagement of solid waste were identified as the main culprits. So far so good. But Dhaka has seen many plans for saving its rivers before, only to watch the waters turn blacker and the banks narrower.

To understand what has been lost, one has to look back at how Dhaka came into being. The Buriganga, literally the Old Ganges, was not a water channel at the edge of the city; it was the basis of the city's growth. When the Mughals made Dhaka the provincial capital in the early seventeenth century, the river offered navigation, defence, communication and access to the trading routes of Bengal. Muslin and foodgrains moved through it, while its water served households and its fish sustained communities. Settlements, markets, warehouses, ghats and structures grew along its northern bank. Today, Sadarghat remains a gateway between the capital and riverine Bangladesh. In fact, before roads, flyovers and motor vehicles came to dominate the scene, the Buriganga was Dhaka's road, marketplace, water source and breathing space rolled into one.

But the same city that drew life from the Buriganga gradually began treating it as a drain. Unplanned urbanisation, encroachment and industrial expansion brought tanneries, dyeing units and chemical factories to its banks and catchment. Sewage, industrial effluent, biomedical waste, oil, plastic and household garbage then found the easiest way out through drains into the river. Relocation of the Hazaribagh tanneries removed one notorious source, but did not bring the Buriganga back to life. According to the World Bank, more than 80 per cent of Dhaka's untreated wastewater and sewage enter the interconnected waterways, while over half of the city's canals have disappeared or remain clogged. During the dry season, when fresh flow is meagre, the system carries little other than the waste generated by the metropolis.

Now, to treat such poisoning as merely an environmental problem would be to miss the wood for the trees. Dhaka is surrounded by the Buriganga, Turag, Balu and Shitalakkhya and was once crisscrossed by canals. Together they formed a natural drainage bowl for monsoon water. When canals are filled and outfalls choked, heavy rain turns roads and neighbourhoods into stagnant pools. Pollution further reduces flow and obstructs drainage. A restored river-and-canal network would, therefore, strengthen flood resilience, reduce waterlogging and help the city cope with heavier rainfall expected from climate change. No number of pumps can permanently compensate for destruction of the natural drainage system on which this deltaic city was built.

The issue is equally one of public health and social justice. People beside the rivers, especially the poor, are exposed to foul air and contaminated water and suffer from skin, respiratory and waterborne diseases. Polluted water also harms fish, livestock and crops and can enter into the human food chain. Meanwhile, dependence on groundwater puts pressure on the aquifers beneath Dhaka. Cleaner surface water would expand the city's future water-supply options, though it would require treatment. A living river could moderate the harshness of the concrete-dominated environment, support biodiversity and provide space for recreation. No wonder cities around the world spend generously to recover waterfronts they once neglected.

There is also an economic argument policymakers cannot ignore. Navigable rivers offer cheap transport for passengers and goods and can take pressure off Dhaka's congested roads. Clean riverfronts can revive boat services, fisheries, markets, tourism and small businesses and restore dignity to Old Dhaka. But erecting concrete structures, restaurants and decorative lights on the banks will not amount to river restoration. Nor can eviction of poor settlers be a substitute for action against encroachers and industrial polluters. The water has to be cleaned at source, the natural width and flow of the river protected and riverbanks kept accessible to the public. Otherwise, a cosmetic riverfront will only hide a sewer behind an attractive facade.

Notably, the country does not suffer from a shortage of laws, studies or grand plans. The Blue Network programme to restore four rivers and 22 canals is already on the books, and the World Bank approved US$370 million in February for sanitation, solid waste management and river restoration. So, the latest action plan should not become another layer of paperwork. It must bring existing initiatives under one measurable framework. Every pollution outlet should be mapped; every agency should have a responsibility, budget and deadline; and water-quality data should be made public in real time. An effluent treatment plant (ETP) that operates only during an inspection is of no use. Polluters must be made to pay without exception and not only when a mobile court happens to appear.

In this connection, factories should operate ETPs, while common treatment facilities are provided for clusters where individual plants are impractical. Sewerage, faecal-sludge management and door-to-door waste collection have to expand together. Drains and canals must be freed of illegal connections, waste and encroachment, with humane rehabilitation for vulnerable occupants. Dredging alone will not do, since it merely shifts toxic sediment unless the material is tested and safely disposed of. At the same time, freshwater flow, regular monitoring, heavier penalties for repeat offenders and prosecution without political favour are essential. Environmental organisations, universities, schools and riverbank communities should monitor progress, but the state cannot pass its regulatory duty on to volunteers.

The Prime Minister is right that failure now will leave the nation answerable to future generations. Yet the real test will begin after committee meetings, press briefings and preparation of the promised plan are over. The PMO should publish transparent quarterly progress reports and make agencies as well as polluters fully answerable for missed targets. The Buriganga and other rivers around the capital have to be restored not as part of beautification projects, but as the living drainage, transport and ecological system without which Dhaka cannot become a liveable city. In the final analysis, bringing the Buriganga back to life means giving Dhaka itself a real chance once again to breathe and survive.​

 

[Saif]

Tackling ramifications of climate change

While the Global Environment Facility (GEF) predates the 1992 Rio 'Earth' Summit, its importance as a financial mechanism grew after the Summit which was also attended by me representing the OIC countries. The UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali inaugurated the Rio 'Earth' Summit 1992 and un

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Tackling ramifications of climate change

Importance of Global Environment Facility and Nagoya protocol

While the Global Environment Facility (GEF) predates the 1992 Rio 'Earth' Summit, its importance as a financial mechanism grew after the Summit which was also attended by me representing the OIC countries. The UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali inaugurated the Rio 'Earth' Summit 1992 and underlined the need to develop a global blueprint for balancing economic development with environmental protection. The GEF's importance as a financial mechanism grew after the Summit.

The Rio Summit produced three major environmental conventions. These were the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Convention on Biological Diversity, and later in 1994, the Convention to Combat Desertification. The GEF also became the financial mechanism for these agreements, charged with mobilising and distributing funds to help countries implement them.

The Global Environment Facility was established in October 1991 under the chairmanship of Mohamed El-Ashry as a US Dollar1 billion pilot programme in the World Bank to enable developing countries to take action on environmental challenges and to promote sustainable development. The GEF would provide new and additional grants and concessional funding to cover the "incremental" or additional costs associated with transforming a project with national benefits into one with global environmental benefits.

In 1992, at the Rio Earth Summit, the GEF was restructured and established as a permanent, separate institution. The decision to make the GEF an independent organisation enhanced the involvement of developing countries in the decision-making process and in implementation of the projects. Since 1994, the World Bank has served as the Trustee of the GEF Trust Fund and provides administrative services.

As part of the restructuring, the GEF was entrusted to become the financial mechanism for both the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. In partnership with The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, the GEF started funding projects that enable the Russian Federation and nations in Eastern Europe and Central Asia to phase out their use of ozone-destroying chemicals.

GEF Agencies are the operational arm of the GEF. They work closely with project proponents-government agencies, civil society organisations, and other stakeholders-to design, develop and implement GEF-funded projects and programmes.

The United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Environment Programme, and the World Bank were the three initial partners implementing GEF projects. Some of the other important agencies the GEF works with are -- Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Asian Development Bank (ADB), European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

In 1998, the GEF Council decided to expand beyond the initial three implementing agencies, including the International Finance Corporation, to broaden its ability to enable innovating financing mechanisms and better leverage private sector investment. The GEF subsequently was also selected to serve as financial mechanism for three more international conventions: The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (2001), the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (2003), and the Minamata Convention on Mercury (2013).

The GEF work focuses on biodiversity, climate change (mitigation and adaptation), chemicals and waste, international waters, land degradation, and sustainable forest management.

Biodiversity appears to be under heavy threat. Reducing and preventing further biodiversity loss are considered among the most critical challenges to humankind. Of all the problems the world faces in managing "global goods," only the loss of biodiversity is viewed as irreversible.

Climate change from human-induced emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases (GHGs) is considered as a critical global issue, requiring substantial action. It is felt that these actions need to include investment to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, and adaptation to climate changes including variability. The early impacts of climate change have already appeared, and scientists believe that further impacts are inevitable by the poorest people in developing countries. The GEF consequently supports projects in developing countries.

Climate change mitigation by reducing or avoiding greenhouse gas emissions through renewable energy; energy efficiency; sustainable transport; and management of land use, land-use change, and forestry are considered as important. In this context it is felt that developing countries aiming to become climate-resilient should try to promote immediate and longer-term adaptation measures in development policies, plans, programmes, projects, and actions.

Land degradation is also considered as a major threat to biodiversity, ecosystem stability, and society's ability to function. In this context the interconnectivity between ecosystems across scales and land degradation is triggering destructive processes that can have cascading effects across the entire biosphere. Loss of biomass through vegetation clearance and increased soil erosion can also produce greenhouse gases that contribute global warming and climate change. The GEF supports projects in reversing and preventing desertification, land degradation and in mitigating the effects of drought in affected areas in order to support poverty reduction and environmental sustainability.

Sustainable forest management by reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation is also a significant area of interest for GEF. Forest ecosystems are expected to play a key role in helping people in developing countries to adapt to the effects of climate change. The GEF supports projects in forest conservation (primarily protected areas and buffer zones), sustainable use of forests (forest production landscapes, sustainable forest management), and addressing forests and trees in the wider landscape.

The GEF Trust Fund operates through periodic "replenishment" cycles. Donor countries pledge new contributions every four years, which allows the GEF to finance programmes during the next funding period. For example, the GEF-9 cycle will cover the period from July 2026 to June 2030 and focus on scaling up environmental investments while mobilising private capital and strengthening country ownership of environmental policies.

The Global Environment Facility (GEF) has created Integrated Programmes. These are special programmes designed to address multiple environmental goals at the same time in a more coordinated and efficient way. For example, the Food Systems Integrated Programme does not fund separate projects for climate change, biodiversity, and land degradation. Instead, it combines them into one unified project, which helps achieve stronger and longer-lasting results while making better use of funding.

Global Biodiversity Framework Fund is also a relatively new component of the GEF family of funds. It was created to help countries implement the Kunming Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which was adopted in 2022 under the Convention on Biological Diversity.

The biodiversity framework sets ambitious targets for protecting nature by 2030. Its most prominent targets include the "30 by 30" target, which calls for protecting at least 30 per cent of the world's land and ocean areas by the end of the decade. The Framework also sets a 30 per cent target for the restoration of ecosystems and a target of mobilising 30 billion US Dollars in international financial flows to developing countries for biodiversity action.

The Global Biodiversity Framework Fund supports actions that help countries meet these targets.

It would also be pertinent at this juncture to refer to the Nagoya Protocol Implementation Fund which aims to support countries in implementing the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing. This international agreement, part of the Convention on Biological Diversity, aims to make sure that the genetic resources of the planet are used fairly and equitably, with benefits shared with those who provide them. Genetic resources include plants, animals, and microorganisms that are used in research and commercial products such as medicines, cosmetics, and agricultural technologies. Historically, many developing countries have expressed concerns that companies and researchers benefit from these resources without sharing profits or knowledge.

The Nagoya Protocol fixes these issues by requiring users to get permission from the country providing the resources and also agree on how benefits (like money or knowledge) will be shared. The fund supports countries by helping them: create laws and rules for using genetic resources, improve monitoring systems and build skills among researchers and policymakers. Projects funded in this context are also aimed to support Indigenous peoples and local communities, who often hold traditional knowledge associated with biological resources. Protecting this knowledge and ensuring fair compensation has thereby become a key objective of the Nagoya framework.

Before concluding, one also needs to refer to the Least Developed Countries Fund which focuses on supporting climate adaptation in the world's most vulnerable nations. These countries often face severe environmental risks but lack the finances and systems to respond efficiently. This fund supports the preparation and implementation of the National Adaptation Programme of Action and National Adaptation Plans. These are country-specific strategies that identify the most urgent climate risks facing each country and outline measures to reduce vulnerability. Typical projects within this paradigm include the following-- strengthening climate-resilient agriculture, improving water management systems, Protecting coastal zones, and building early warning systems for extreme weather events. It may also be noted here that because many least developed countries face multiple environmental issues at once, the fund often supports integrated projects that address climate change alongside biodiversity conservation and land management.

Muhammad Zamir, a former Ambassador is an analyst specialised in foreign affairs, right to information and good governance.​