Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen warned that climate-induced migration is posing a serious security risk that could transcend the country’s borders.
“Bangladesh feels that the plight of millions of climate-affected migrants must be highlighted in appropriate forums and women and children-sensitive issues must be given priority in climate change discussions,” he said.
Momen spoke yesterday at a policy dialogue titled ‘Human Mobility in the Context of Climate Change: Towards a Common Narrative and Action Pathway’ held at the Foreign Service Academy.
Calling for united and urgent action on climate migration, Momen said, “We are sensitive to the fact that climate-induced forced migration can spread beyond national borders and pose serious security risks.”
The purpose of the event was to bring together all stakeholders to identify possible ways for Bangladesh to further the global agenda on climate change-migration to present at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference (Cop27) in November this year in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. goes
The event was jointly organized by the Ministry of External Affairs and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
The dialogue served as a forum to present the various perspectives of governments, civil society, the private sector and the international community as well as the media.
Momen said during the last COP26 conference in Glasgow, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina called for global responsibility sharing for climate migrants displaced by rising sea levels, rising salinity, river erosion, floods and droughts.
Overall, the number of Bangladeshis displaced by climate change could reach 13.3 million by 2050. According to the World Bank it has become the main cause of internal migration in the country.
Momen said that such displacement is creating a heavy burden on Dhaka and other big cities of the country.
