A road map has to be prepared right now to reach the government’s goal of increasing the country’s consumption of renewable energy to 40 per cent by 2041, Information and Broadcasting Minister Hasan Mahmud has said.

He said, “From now on, if a road map is prepared, it is possible to achieve these goals gradually.”

The minister made this remark at a COP26 side event titled 'Foreign Investment in Renewable Energy Sector' organised by the Power Division at Bangladesh Pavilion in the Scottish city of Glasgow on Tuesday evening.

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He told the representatives of Bangladesh’s development partners present at the meeting that Bangladesh will benefit from the use of modern technology and financial assistance to reach its green energy targets by 2041.   

He suggested turning the urban wastes into renewable energy besides raising the use of solar power. This will make the environment clean and save money too.

There is no alternative to green energy to make the global mitigation efforts a success, the minister added.

He said that Bangladesh is an innocent climate victim due to the continuous carbon emissions of the developed countries of the world. But they are not giving any compensation or technical assistance for causing this damage.

About the development in the power and energy sector in the country, Hasan Mahmud said per capita income and average life expectancy have increased due to the development of this sector. The living standard of the people has improved.

“Now people in remote areas of the country have access to electricity, their income has also increased.”

Besides, he said Bangladesh has become a middle-income country this year thanks increasing electricity coverage. Now the per capita income stands at $2250.

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Noting that remarkable development has been achieved in the power and energy sector under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the minister said 100% of the people of the country will get access to electricity by the end this year.

When Sheikh Hasina took over as the prime minister in 2009, her government inherited only 3,500 MW of electricity, which in the last 12 years has increased to 24,000 MW.

Secretary of the Power Division Md Habibur Rahman, Chairman of Sustainable and Renewable Energy Development Authority (Sreda) Mohammad Alauddin, Director General of Power Cell Mohammad Hossain and Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF) Deputy Managing Director Fazle Rabbi Sadeque Ahmed were present at the event among others.