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Continued investment in coastal resilience critical for sustainable growth: World Bank
With increasing climate risks, Bangladesh needs to continue investments to strengthen climate resilience in the coastal zones to protect the development gains, says a new World Bank report launched on Monday.
The report, “Bangladesh: Enhancing Coastal Resilience in a Changing Climate” highlights the country’s journey to reducing vulnerability to climate change and recommends further actions towards improving the resilience of its coastal region.
It analyzes the drivers of risks, how the government has reduced these risks, and offers new perspectives and innovative solutions.
Also read: World Bank to provide US$300 million to help Bangladesh’s pandemic response
Despite vulnerability to climatic risks, Bangladesh has emerged as a global leader in climate change adaptation and is known for proactively investing in resilience. It shows how long-term investments in disaster risk reduction save lives, reduce economic losses, and protect development gains.
This was possible due to a range of initiatives backed up by a strategic policy framework, from grassroot-level adaptation and community-based early warning systems to structural investments in infrastructure complemented by nature-based solutions and fostering innovation. Since independence in 1971, Bangladesh has reduced cyclone-related fatalities by 100-fold.
However, a rapidly growing population, environmental degradation, and increasing climate risks are putting pressure on the existing natural and infrastructure systems in the coastal zone which is home to about 40 million people. Bangladesh needs to take further immediate actions to improve resilience.
“Coastal resilience is not a static goal to be met, but rather a continuous process of adapting to changing conditions and finding synergies between development objectives,” said Dandan Chen, World Bank Acting Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan.
“For the last fifty years, the World Bank has supported Bangladesh to build climate resilience and improve disaster risk management. Today, the country shares valuable experience in improving disaster preparedness and climate resilience and is an inspiration for other climate-vulnerable nations,” Chen said.
The report finds that further investments in coastal resilience would produce an array of economic, social, and environmental benefits for Bangladesh.
It lays out seven key recommendations to strengthen the resilience of the coastal region, including strengthening operation and maintenance of infrastructure; recognizing local knowledge; and utilizing state-of-art modeling tools.
Given the changing climate and dynamic coastal processes, a risk management framework should act as the guiding principle for adaptive delta management.
Also read: World Bank happy, congratulates Bangladesh on Padma Bridge
Infrastructure investments need to be complemented with nature-based solutions.
The coastal area can benefit from inclusive community participation and livelihood adaptation for sustainable resilience.
Lastly, establishing an integrated framework that goes beyond risk reduction and includes growth, well-being, and sustainable development at its core.
“Given the significant investment need, we can learn from past interventions and find innovative solutions. This report provides a first-of-its-kind analysis of all large investment projects since the 1960s”, said Swarna Kazi, World Bank Senior Disaster Risk Management Specialist and co-author of the report.
“A key lesson learned is that there is huge potential in Bangladesh for nature-based solutions or hybrid solutions with a mix of green-grey infrastructure,” added Ignacio Urrutia, World Bank Senior Disaster Risk Management Specialist and co-author of the report.
This report complements the forthcoming Bangladesh Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR), the World Bank Group’s new diagnostic report that integrates climate change and development considerations.
Since 1972, the World Bank is helping Bangladesh build coastal and climate resilience and disaster preparedness. The first five World Bank projects committed to Bangladesh in 1972, included support to improve disaster preparedness in the coastal area in the aftermath of deadly cyclone Bhola.
Currently, with an ongoing program of $1.9 billion, the World Bank is helping Bangladesh to build climate resilience through multipurpose cyclone shelters, embankments, early warning systems, weather services, and afforestation.
PM felicitates UK’s new king, looks forward to excellent friendship
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday extended her heartiest felicitations to the United Kingdom’s new monarch King Charles III on his accession to the throne.
In a signed letter, on behalf of the People and the Government of Bangladesh, she said: “I am confident that under your visionary reign, the people of the United Kingdom will continue to enjoy an ever-flourishing future, building on the legacy of your beloved mother, Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Second.”
Also read: PM Hasina to address the press Wednesday on her India visit
She also offered her wholehearted support to the King to further strengthen the excellent friendship and cooperation existing between the two countries and steer the Commonwealth in the desired direction.
PM Hasina wished the King, The Queen Consort, and the Royal Family the very best of health, happiness, and long life, and the friendly people of the United Kingdom continued peace, progress, and prosperity.
Also read: PM likely to attend Queen’s state funeral
Dengue death toll rises to 37 as four more die
Four more Dengue patients died in 24 hours till Monday morning, raising this year’s death toll from the mosquito-borne disease in Bangladesh to 37.
During this period, 345 more people were hospitalised with the viral fever as cases have continued to increase in Bangladesh, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
All the latest deaths were reported from Dhaka.
Also read: Day 1 of Anti-dengue drive: DNCC realises over Tk 4 lakh in fines
With the new numbers, the dengue death toll from Dhaka division rose to 17, in Chattogram it stood at 17, and three at Barishal division.
Of the new patients, 228 were admitted to different hospitals in Dhaka and 117 outside it, DGHS said.
A total of 1,112 dengue patients, including 853 in the capital, are now receiving treatment at hospitals across the country.
On June 21, the DGHS reported the first death of the season from the viral disease.
Also read: Dengue death toll rises to 33 as another dies, 360 more hospitalised in 24 hrs
This year, the directorate has recorded 9,095 dengue cases and 7,946 recoveries so far.
PM Hasina to address the press Wednesday on her India visit
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will address a press conference on Wednesday afternoon on the outcome of her recent four-day visit to India.
The press conference will start at 4pm, said PM’s Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim.
The PM went to New Delhi on September 5 at the invitation of her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi.
She held bilateral talks with Modi and separately met Indian President Droupadi Murmu and the country’s Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar.
Read: PM mourns passing of Sajeda Chowdhury
During the visit Dhaka and Delhi signed seven MoUs -- demonstrating cooperation in a number of areas, including water sharing of the Kushiyara River.
Other MoUs are related to cooperation in the areas of space technology, science and technology, railways, judiciary and broadcasting.
Hydrocele surgery: Economic benefit outweighs cost by 15 times
The economic benefit of hydrocele surgery outweighs the cost by 15 times, said International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b) on Monday.
It noted that patients with scrotal swelling, known as hydrocele are highly neglected, often socially excluded and deserve support.
icddr,b researchers conducted an outcome evaluation that showed that surgery had a significant impact on these patients' social and economic participation.
The surgical intervention is highly cost-effective (1:15), meaning the economic benefit of the surgery outweighs the cost of surgery by 15 times.
Moreover, these patients are now capable of working for more hours than before, averting their Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs).
icddr,b organised a dissemination seminar on Monday to share findings of a recently concluded project titled "Ensuring Health Equity and Economic Participation for Chronic Lymphatic Filariasis Patients through Surgical Intervention in Bangladesh."
Read: Excessive Crying in Infants: Possible Reasons, Tips of Soothing
It was held at icddr,b's traction meeting room in Mohakhali.
Filariasis is a parasitic disease transmitted to humans through culex mosquito bites. Swelling of the affected limb followed by fever episodes is the disease's main symptom, which in the long run may cause the person various degrees of disabilities.
Filariasis is also manifested by extensive scrotal swelling, known as hydrocele.
In 10 northern endemic districts of Bangladesh, about 25 thousand suspected cases of hydrocele patients live.
They feel ashamed of seeking healthcare due to social stigma. Additionally, many of these patients cannot afford the cost of hydrocele surgery, leading them to remain excluded from mainstream socio-economic activities.
Since 2022, with support from Bangladesh Bank, icddr,b has provided surgical support with the help of local government hospitals to 203 patients with hydrocele.
Of these, 145 are from Rangpur, and 58 are from Kurigram Districts. Previously with support from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, UK, from 2020 to 2021, icddr,b helped 838 hydrocele patients return to normal life with hydrocele surgery.
Bangladesh logs 421 more Covid cases, zero death
Bangladesh reported 421 more Covid infections in 24 hours till Monday morning.
As no new deaths were reported, country's total fatalities remained unchanged at 29,334 and with the new case the caseload rose to 2,015, 308, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
The daily case test positivity rate rose to 9.83 percent from Sunday's 8.87 percent as 4,560samples were tested.
Also read: Global Covid cases near 614 million
The mortality rate remained unchanged at 1.46 percent and the recovery rate at 97.21 percent.
In August, the country reported 32 Covid-linked deaths and 6,689 cases.
Bangladesh registered its highest daily caseload of 16,230 on July 28 last year and daily fatalities of 264 on August 10 the same year.
Also read: Chartered flights to take Covid-stranded Bangladeshi students back to China
BSF to hand over body of Bangladeshi teenager after 5 days
Indian Border Security Force (BSF) on Monday afternoon will hand over the body of the Bangladeshi teenager who was shot dead by its members on Wednesday after five days of the killing.
The BSF members agreed to return the body around 4 pm after holding a flag meeting with the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) -29, held in the morning at no 314/4 S Pillar of Dainur frontier.
Bangladeshi teenager Minhazul Islam Minar, 17, son of Jahangir Hossain of Askorpurup union was shot dead and another injured by Indian Border Security Force (BSF), near the border in Sadar upazila of Dinajpur, authorities said on Thursday.
Read: BGB-BSF DG-level border conference begins in Dhaka
Local people found the bullet-hit body in Haripur Teliapara area of the border this morning, said Khanpur Union Parishad Chairman Abu Bakar Siddique.
PM mourns passing of Sajeda Chowdhury
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday said the nation has suffered an irreparable loss due to the death of Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury.
“We have lost a seasoned politician while I've lost a true guardian,” she said in tributes to Sajeda Chowdhury.
She expressed deep shock and sorrow at the death of the presidium member of Awami League, who also served as deputy leader of the House, a minister and general secretary of Awami League.
The late leader was one of the organisers of the 1971 Liberation War of Bangladesh.
Hasina recalled that Sajeda Chowdhury first met Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1954 when he was conducting the election campaign of Jukta Front. And since then she was attracted to Awami politics.
She joined the Awami League in 1956 and played a very important role in all the movements and struggles including the six-point movement of 1966 and the mass uprising of 1969.
She was one of the seven women members of the Thana Parishad in the 1970 elections. From 1969 to 1975, she served as the general secretary of Bangladesh Mahila Awami League, Hasina said.
The prime minister said that Sajeda led the AL as its acting general secretary after the assassination of the father of the nation with most of his family members on August 15, 1975. She upheld the party endured life in jail, oppression and torture.
She again served as general secretary from 1986-1992 before becoming a presidium member.
Sheikh Hasina said that Sajeda Chowdhury's role was immense in electing her as the president of the organisation in her absence in the National Council of Awami League held in February 1981.
Read: AL leader Sajeda Chowdhury passes away
After returning to the country on May 17, 1981, Hasina got her as a patron.
From then until she fell ill, she remained as a shadow companion of Hasina.
The prime minister prayed for the eternal salvation of the departed soul and expressed sympathy to the bereaved family.
“We want Justice, why did our brother die?”
Students of Government Science School and College today (September 12, 2022) blocked roads in Dhaka’s Farmgate area, demanding safe roads and protesting the death of a fellow student in a road accident in Tejgaon area yesterday.
A number of students of the school took to the street around 11:50 am, in front of the Farmgate Police Box, demanding road safety, according to the UNB photographer.
Read “No single nation can address evolving tech-based crimes on its own”
“No single nation can address evolving tech-based crimes on its own”
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today (September 12, 2022) stressed the need for enhanced cooperation among member countries of International Association of Police Academies (INTERPA) to fight tech-based crimes and ensure global peace, stability and development.
“Enhanced technology, expertise, intelligence sharing and coordination among law enforcement agencies of all these countries will go a long way in curbing violent extremism and transnational tech-based crimes around the globe. There are commonalities that bring us closer, and we must create a synergy in favour of enhanced cooperation for furthering global peace, stability, and development,” she said.
The premier said this while inaugurating the 11th Annual INTERPA Conference on Digitalization of Policing in a Dhaka hotel through a virtual platform from her official residence Ganobhaban.
Read: PM Hasina: Bangladesh is committed to keeping global peace
She hoped that this conference would afford all the member countries an opportunity to reach a general consensus to explore an innovative, viable, prompt and effective mode of communication and cooperation among INTERPA member countries.
Noting that the theme of this conference – ‘Digitalization of Policing’ – is a time-befitting one, Sheikh Hasina said violent extremism and transnational organized crime pose an enormous threat to national and international security in this age of globalization.
In recent years, new development in technology and communications has enabled such crime networks to carry on their anti-human schemes with increased mobility, she said.
Read: Get technological knowledge for the 4th industrial revolution, PM asks the youth
She said the destructive activities of the terrorists result in far-reaching destabilizing impact on the whole world.
The PM said new challenges are also being originated in the form of cybercrime, money laundering, counterfeiting of currency, terrorist financing and other modern-day threats. “Thus, policing around the world has become extremely challenging these days. In this present context, no single nation can address these on its own,” she said.
“To address all these menaces, there is no alternative to consolidating cooperation among the countries of the world,” she said, adding that this unique conference of INTERPA comprising professionals from member police training institutions across continents would open up new avenues for cooperation in the arena of state-of-the-art training, capacity enhancement and sharing the best practices.
Read FM for change of mindset to achieve lasting global peace
“Digitalization of policing can be a great way forward to fighting terrorism, violent extremism and other tech-based crimes,” she continued.
In this context, she mentioned that Bangladesh Police has proven its capacity and resilience in successfully combating terrorism and violent extremism.
Hasina said institutionalizing a demand-driven and outcome-based platform to curb violent extremism and tech-based transnational crimes can ensure global peace and stability. “We believe, the collective will and joint efforts by INTERPA members can make a marked difference in the security landscape of the globe,” she added.
Read Bangladesh reaffirms commitment to global peace
Turning to the development of Bangladesh, the Prime Minister said her government has achieved success in developing a happy and prosperous country in keeping with the aspiration of the people of Bangladesh. “We have earned desired progress in all social indices,” she said.
“We have taken every measure to transform the country into a ‘Digital Bangladesh’ by making information technology accessible to all, including the marginal people, through efficient, service-oriented and ICT-friendly services,” said Hasina.
Citing that Bangladesh Police plays a significant role in the onward march of our progress and development, she said, “There have been substantive qualitative changes in Police, thanks to the developmental activities of our government. We will push forward this pace of development of police in days to come.”
Read US lauds Bangladesh’s role in UN peacekeeping
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan, Senior Secretary of Public Security Division Md. Akhter Hossain, INTERPA President Prof Dr Yilmaz Colak also spoke at the opening session, presided over by Inspector General of Bangladesh Police Dr Benazir Ahmed.
Rector of Police Staff College Bangladesh Khandker Golam Faruq delivered the welcome speech.