NEWS ON DATE - 26-04-2024
Decision to double support to climate adaptation must be implemented: Saber H. Chowdhury
Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Saber Hossain Chowdhury said that the decision to double the support for climate adaptation activities should be implemented. He said, Bangladesh needs international support for full implementation of Mujib Climate Prosperity Plan, National Adaptation Plan, Nationally Determined Contribution. The minister clearly highlighted the views of least developed and developing countries including Bangladesh on important issues in the decision-making process related to climate finance at the upcoming COP 29.
The Environment Minister said these things while addressing the Petersburg Climate Dialogue held in Berlin, Germany on Friday (April 26).
The Environment Minister emphasized the restoration of mutual trust and confidence in UN climate change negotiations. He stressed the imperative of fulfilling all previous commitments and prioritizing science in all efforts to address climate change. Furthermore, he called upon all nations, particularly developed ones and those with the capacity, to unite in their efforts to achieve the Paris Climate Agreement's target of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
Environment Minister Saber Chowdhury held bilateral meetings with various dignitaries, including the COP28 and COP29 presidents; Saudi Arabia's Chief Climate Negotiator Khalid M. Almehaid, State Secretary and Special Envoy for International Climate Action of German Federal Foreign Office Jennifer Lee Morga, State Secretary of the German Federal Chancellery Dr. Jörg Kukies, representative of Egypt, Denmark on the sidelines of the Petersberg Climate Dialogue. He also received an invitation letter from Yalchin Rafiyev, Deputy Foreign Minister and Chief Negotiator of Azerbaijan, to attend the COP-29.
Environment Minister Saber Chowdhury's address drew significant interest from ministers representing approximately 40 countries attending the Petersburg Climate Dialogue, with many expressing support for his perspectives. Among the notable attendees were German Chancellor Olaf Schloss and Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev, alongside ministerial delegates from 40 nations.
Environment Minister holds bilateral meeting with Saudi climate negotiator in Berlin.
Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Minister Saber Hussain Chowdhury engaged in a pivotal bilateral meeting with Saudi Arabia's Chief Climate Negotiator, Khalid M. Almehaid, during the Petersberg Climate Dialogue in Berlin, Germany, on Thursday, April 25, 2024.
The meeting underscored the commitment of both nations to collaborate on addressing pressing climate challenges and advancing the global climate agenda. Minister Chowdhury and Chief Negotiator Almehaid exchanged insights and perspectives on key issues such as renewable energy adoption, and climate adaptation strategies.
Minister Chowdhury reiterated Bangladesh's unwavering dedication to ambitious climate action, highlighting the country's significant strides in renewable energy development and climate resilience efforts. He emphasized the importance of international cooperation and collective action in achieving the goals outlined in the Paris Agreement.
Chief Negotiator Almehaid commended Bangladesh's proactive approach to climate change mitigation and adaptation, acknowledging the nation's leadership in championing sustainable development practices. He expressed Saudi Arabia's commitment to strengthening collaboration with Bangladesh and other nations to address the interconnected challenges posed by climate change.
The bilateral meeting between Minister Chowdhury and Chief Negotiator Almehaid serves as a testament to the shared commitment of Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia to advancing the global climate agenda and fostering sustainable development for present and future generations.
Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Saber Hossain Chowdhury received the invitation letter from Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chief Negotiator of Azerbaijan Yalchin Rafiyev to participate in COP-29 on the sidelines of the Petersberg Climate Dialogue held in Berlin, Germany. Besides, he held bilateral meetings with the delegates of Egypt, Denmark, President of COP-28 and COP-29 and the German State Secretary.
PM urges AL men to work for country
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Friday asked the leaders and activists of Awami League to work for the development of Bangladesh and its people.
“You should work for the development of the country and its people,” she said when a delegation of Thailand Awami League paid a courtesy call on her at her place of residence.
PM’s Speechwriter Md. Nazrul Islam briefed the reporters.
The President of Bangladesh Awami League, Sheikh Hasina, asked them to spread the ideals of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
“The Father of the Nation was killed untimely but his ideals remained among us. That is why I’ve been working to implement his ideals,” she said, adding that Bangabandhu had dreamt to bring smiles to the faces of poor and destitute people of the country.
Referring to the remarkable progress and development Bangladesh witnessed in the last 15 years, the premier said it has been possible to attain the progress as they (her party) are in power uninterruptedly for a long time.
The leaders and activists told the Prime Minister that many Bangladeshis have accepted the citizenship of Thailand, but they are keen to keep the dual citizenship. They sought the PM’s intervention for maintaining dual citizenship.
In response, the prime minister said that she would talk with the Thai government in this regard.
'China and the United States should be partners rather than rivals': Xi Jinping
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday said China and the United States should be partners rather than rivals and help each other succeed rather than hurt each other and engage in vicious competition.
Xi Jinping said this during the meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
"Over the past 45 years, the relationship has gone through winds and rains, and it has a number of important inspirations to offer: China and the United States should be partners rather than rivals; help each other succeed rather than hurt each other; seek common ground and reserve differences, rather than engage in vicious competition; and honor words with actions, rather than say one thing but do the opposite," he said.
Noting that this year marks the 45th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and the United States, he proposed mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation to be the three overarching principles. They are both lessons learned from the past and a guide for the future.
Saying that transformation not seen in a century is unfolding in a profound way, and the international situation is fluid and turbulent, the president said it is the shared desire of both the two peoples and the international community to see China and the U.S. strengthen dialogue, manage differences and advance cooperation.
"I’ve said many times before that the planet is big enough to accommodate the common development and respective prosperity of China and the U.S. China is happy to see a confident, open, prosperous and thriving United States," he also said.
He hoped the U.S can also look at China’s development in a positive light. This is a fundamental issue that must be addressed, just like the first button of a shirt that must be put right, in order for the China-U.S. relationship to truly stabilize, improve and move forward.
Mentioning his meeting with President Biden in San Francisco last year, Chinese President said they had launched the San Francisco vision that is future-oriented and m followed upon their common understandings, maintained communication in various areas, and made some good progress in the last couple of months,
"There are still issues to be addressed which require further efforts. Your visit this time was agreed upon between President Biden and I in our phone call several weeks ago. I hope you will find it productive," he said.
Secretary Blinken conveyed President Biden’s greetings to President Xi. He noted that since President Biden and President Xi met in San Francisco, the U.S. and China have made good progress in their cooperation in such areas as bilateral interactions, counter-narcotics, artificial intelligence and people-to-people exchanges.
The multiplicity and complexity of the challenges the world faces require the U.S. and China working together. The Americans from all walks of life that he met during the visit all expressed the hope to see U.S.-China relations improve. The U.S. does not seek a new Cold War, does not seek to change China’s system, does not seek to suppress China’s development, does not seek to revitalize its alliances against China, and has no intention to have a conflict with China.
The U.S. adheres to the One-China policy. It hopes to maintain communication with the Chinese side, follow through on what the two presidents agreed in San Francisco, seek more cooperation, avoid misunderstandings and miscalculations, responsibly manage differences, and achieve stable development of U.S.-China relations.
President Xi asked Secretary Blinken to convey his regards to President Biden. Wang Yi participated in the meeting.
Gas supply to remain off for 12 hours Saturday
Gas supply will remain suspended for all categories of customers at different areas in the city for 12 hours from 9 am to 9 pm on Saturday for emergency works in the gas pipeline.
According to Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution company Ltd, the areas where gas supply will remain off include Shanir Akhra, Baraitala, Chhapra Mosque, Dania, Jurain, Dholairpar and Kadmatoli.
The adjoining areas may experience low pressure in gas supply, said the Titas Gas regretting the temporary inconvenience of the consumers.
BNP announces partial committee of Ulema Dal
BNP has announced a five-member partial central committee of Jatiyatabadi Ulema Dal, nearly three months after dissolving its previous committee.
A press release, signed by party's senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, on Friday said the BNP high-command approved the new partial central convening committee of the party’s Islamic scholars’ wing.
Maulana Selim Reza was made convener of Ulema Dal while Maulana Kazi Abul Hossain its member secretary.
Besides, Maulana Md. Alamgir Hossain was made senior joint convener and Maulana Qari Golam Mostafa and Maulana Md. Delwar Hossain were made joint conveners of the five member committee of Ulema Dal, an associate body of BNP.
Earlier on February 1, BNP dissolved the 171-member committee of Ulema Dal and suspended all activities of the organisation.
Maulana Shah Nesharul Haque and Maulana Nazrul Islam Talukder were convener and member secretary respectively of the previous 171-member Ulema Dal committee which was approved by BNP on April 5, 2019.
Easy-bike driver dies from heat stroke in Lalmonirhat
An easy-bike driver is said to have died from heatstroke on Friday as the country continues to reel in the throes of a suffocating heat wave hitting record high temperatures, from which there is seemingly no respite.
The incident happened in Kaliganj of Lalmonirhat on Friday afternoon.
The deceased Rasedul Islam was the son of Badar Uddin of Bichandai area of Dauabari union of Hatibandha upazila.
Locals said that Rasedul Islam suddenly fell into the ground after having his lunch at a hotel in Chamtarhat. They believed that Rashedul died from heat stroke due to intense heat.
Confirming the death, Jahangir Alam Biplob, chairman of Madati Union Parishad said the exact cause of his death could not be ascertained, although it initially appeared to be heat stroke.
Imtiaz Kabir, officer-in-charge of Kaliganj police station, said that he is yet to know the matter.
Meanwhile, people across the country are experiencing the blistering heat as a very severe heat wave is sweeping over the parts of the country.
BNP expels 73 leaders for contesting first phase of upazila polls
The BNP has expelled 73 grassroots leaders for taking part in the first phase of upcoming upazila elections violating the party's decision.
The punitive action was taken against the party leaders as per its constitution, said a press release, signed by BNP Senior Joint General Secretary Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, on Friday.
It said the 73 leaders of BNP and its associate bodies who are contesting for the post of chairman, vice chairman and female vice chairman in the first phase of upazila polls in violation of the party's decision have been expelled from all party positions, including its primary membership.
Of them, 28 are vying for the post of upazila chairman while 24 for the vice-chairman post and 21 for the position of female vice-chairman.
A total of 152 upazilas across the country will go to polls in the first phase on May 8 as per the schedule announced by the Election Commission.
The elections to a total of 492 upazilas will take place in four phases. The second phase of upazila polls will be held on May 23 while the third phase on May 29 and the fourth phase on June 5.
The BNP high-command earlier decided not to join any elections under the current government and the Election Commission.
Bangladesh participates in Japan IT Week
Bangladesh participated in Japan IT Week, Spring, 2024 held from April 24- 26, 2024 at the Tokyo Big Sight. Ambassador of Bangladesh to Japan Shahabuddin Ahmed and Managing Director of Bangladesh Hi-Tech Park Authority G S M Jafarullah, ndc, inaugurated Bangladesh Pavilion on 24th April.
In the evening on the same day, Embassy of Bangladesh organized a seminar titled 'Digital Bangladesh: Your IT Destination' at the Seminar Hall of Tokyo Big Sight, in collaboration with Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), UNIDO ITPO Tokyo and Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS).
Ambassador Shahabuddin Ahmed in his speech urged Japanese companies to invest in Bangladesh. G S M Jafarullah, ndc, Managing Director of Bangladesh Hi-Tech Park Authority, highlighted investment opportunists in the Hi-Tech Parks in Bangladesh. Senior Director of JETRO Yukihide Nakayama spoke about the business environment in Bangladesh while Masahiro Horikawa, CEO of BJIT Inc. shared his business experiences in Bangladesh. Dr. Ariful Haque, Minister (Commerce) of the Embassy delivered a presentation on support services to Japanese companies by the Embassy. On behalf of BASIS, Rejwanur Kabir, COO, Destiny Inc. explained about Bangladesh’s thriving IT sector, investment and business opportunities for Japanese companies and strength of exhibitor companies.
Japan IT Week is one of the major events on information technology in Asia. This year around 900 exhibitors from 20 countries across the world participated in the event. Seventeen Bangladeshi IT companies participated in the event under the auspices of Hi-Tech Park Authority. Japanese companies showed keen interest to Bangladeshi IT companies, and it is expected that Bangladesh’s participation in this fair will help boost Bangladesh’s IT and ITES export to Japan.
On the evening of 26th April, Bangladesh Embassy organized an Opinion Exchange & Networking Event on “Promoting Bangladesh’s IT & ITES Sector in Japan” at the Bangabandhu Auditorium of the Embassy with the participation of the Bangladeshi exhibitors of Japan IT Week, Bangladeshi IT Professionals in Japan and Embassy Officials.
Chuadanga witnesses season’s highest temperature at 42.7°C
Amid the boiling heat in different parts of the country, Chuadanga recorded the highest temperature of this season at 42.7 degrees Celsius on Friday.
People are experiencing the blistering heat as a very severe heat wave is sweeping over the districts of Chuadanga and Jashore and severe heat wave is sweeping over rest part of the Khulna division and the districts of Tangail, Faridpur, Gopalgonj, Manikgonj, Rajshahi, Pabna, Dinajpur and Nilphamari.
Jaminur Rahman, in-charge of Chuadanga Weather Observatory Centre, said they recorded 42.7 Degrees Celsius this afternoon.
The situation may persist for a few more days, he added.
The people of the district, especially the low-income people are in dire straits due to the continuous intense heat.
Working people were seen resting under trees and in shady places hoping for some relief.
Imran Sheikh, a resident of Courtpayara in Chuadanga, said: “We can’t do anything due to the sweltering heat. In the afternoon, the sky turns gloomy and people expect rain but in the morning the extreme heat makes their life miserable.”
Shahjalal, a tea vendor said: “The selling is low due to the hot temperature. People are passing their time sitting and lying on the benches.”
Meanwhile, the number of patients suffering from various heat-related diseases is increasing at Chuadanga Sadar Hospital due to severe heat waves. More than 250 patients are admitted at different wards including diarrhea and children's ward of Sadar Hospital.
Dr Waliar Rahman, health and family planning officer for Chuadanga Sadar upazila, advised the residents to stay indoors because of the risk of heatstroke.
He emphasised the importance of staying hydrated and consuming fruits as much as possible.
According to BMD’s weather bulletin on Friday morning, a very Severe heat wave is sweeping over the districts of Chuadanga and Jashore and severe heat wave is sweeping over rest part of the Khulna division and the districts of Tangail, Faridpur, Gopalgonj, Manikgonj, Rajshahi, Pabna, Dinajpur and Nilphamari.
Besides, a mild to moderate heat wave is sweeping over Barishal division and the districts of Dhaka, Madaripur, Kishoreganj, Narsingdi, Bagura, Naogaon, Sirajgonj, Rangpur, Kurigram, Panchagarh, Mymensingh, Moulvibazar, Rangamati, Chandpur, Feni & Bandarban and it may continue.