The Bangladesh government has set ambitious goals to expand the country’s tree cover from 22.37% to 25% of total land area by 2030. Forest coverage is also targeted to increase from 14.1% to 16%. Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Minister Saber Hossain Chowdhury shared these objectives with UNB. “The government has adopted the National Action Program for Combating Desertification, Land Degradation, and Drought for 2015-2024,” the minister told UNB.  8.33 crore trees to be planted this year during monsoon: Environment secretary In alignment with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 15 and the decisions of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) COP-13, Bangladesh aims to achieve 'Land Degradation Neutrality' by 2030. A national roadmap for addressing land degradation from 2021 to 2041 has also been developed.

The country’s forest coverage stands at 14.10 per, while the tree-covered area is 22.37 per cent, said Environment and Forests Climate Change Minister Md Shahab Uddin on Monday. A number of projects are now being implemented to raise the tree coverage to 24 per cent of the country by 2025 as per the 8th five-year plan, he told Parliament, replying to a scripted question from Awami League lawmaker Benjir Ahmed (Dhaka-20). The minister said the government has set a target to create 29,124-hectare mangrove and block garden as well as 1,574-km strip garden under the Forest Department in the current fiscal year of 2021-22. Also read:Govt plans to construct int’l airport nearby Dhaka: Mahbub Ali  In reply to another question from ruling party MP AKM Sarwar Jahan (Kushtia-1), Shahab Uddin said the social forestation programme continues throughout the country. The forest minister said a total of 102,229-hectare woodlot and block gardens were created in the lands of the Forest Department under the social forestation programme from 1980-81 fiscal to 2020-21 fiscal year. Besides, some 76,752-km strip gardens were developed in other lands including fellow lands, roads, highways, railways and water dams throughout the country in the same time as part of the social afforestation programme, he said. Responding to a scripted question from AL MP Didarul Alam (Chattogram-4), the minister said the number of tigers is 114 in Sundarbans as per the latest census conducted in 2018. Also read: JS passes ‘Mongla Port Authority Bill’ with harsher punishment for polluting environment But 106 tigers were found in 2015 when the camera trapping method was applied for the first time in the Sundarbans tiger census, he said. Besides, some 100,000-150,000 deer, 165-200 crocodiles and 40,000-50,000 monkeys are there in the world's largest mangrove forest Sundarbans, he added.