BPATC

Implementation of the United Nations Conventions on Environment

and Development in Bangladesh
[Type the document subtitle]
Shamim Hosen
Assistant Director
Bangladesh Public Administration Training Centre
Savar, Dhaka-1343
E-mail: Shamim.du207@gmail.com

17
 CONTENTS
1. INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................................................................... 4
1.1. CONVENTION................................................................................................................................................................. 4
1.2. ENVIRONMENT .............................................................................................................................................................. 4

Page | 2 1.3. DEVELOPMENT .............................................................................................................................................................. 4

1.4. ENVIRONMENTAL DEVELOPMENT ................................................................................................................................ 5
2. UN CONVENTIONS ON ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT ................................................................................................. 5
2.1. RIO CONFERRENCE ........................................................................................................................................................ 5
2.2. RIO+3 ............................................................................................................................................................................. 6
2.3. RIO+5 ............................................................................................................................................................................. 6
2.4. RIO+10 ........................................................................................................................................................................... 6
2.5. RIO+ 20 .......................................................................................................................................................................... 6
3. ENVIRONMENTAL PROFILE OF BANGLADESH AND A PARTY TO THE CONVENTIONS ............................................................. 7
4. IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE IN BANGLADESH ..................................................................................................................... 7
4.1. NATURAL DIGASTER ...................................................................................................................................................... 8
4.2. LAND DEGRADATION ..................................................................................................................................................... 8
4.3. DEFORESTATION............................................................................................................................................................ 8
4.4. FLOODS .......................................................................................................................................................................... 8
4.5. DROUGHTS AND ARIDITY .............................................................................................................................................. 9
4.6. UNPLANNED URBANIZATION ........................................................................................................................................ 9
4.7. ARSENIC CONTAMINATION IN THE GROUND WATER ................................................................................................... 9
4.8. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ON SHRIMP CULTURE ......................................................................................................... 9
4.9. ENERGY DISASTER AND ENVIRONMENT ...................................................................................................................... 10
4.10. WATER LODGGING ................................................................................................................................................. 10
4.11. DESERTIFICATION ................................................................................................................................................... 10
4.12. GLOBAL WARMING ................................................................................................................................................. 10
5. IMPLEMENTATION OF UN CONVENTIONS ON ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT ........................................................... 11
5.1. STATUS OF IMPLEMENTION ........................................................................................................................................ 11
5.2. ENVIRONMENTAL STRATEGIES OF GOVERNMENT ...................................................................................................... 12
5.3. DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES OF GOVERNMENT .......................................................................................................... 13
5.4. PROBLEMS BEHIND IMPLEMENTATION ...................................................................................................................... 14
6. SUGGESTING MEASURES....................................................................................................................................................... 14
7. CONCLUDING REMARKS ........................................................................................................................................................ 15
8. BIBLIOGRAPHY ...................................................................................................................................................................... 15
 Implementation of the United Nations Conventions on Environment and Development in
Bangladesh

Abstract
United Nations is an organization, formed in 1945 to promote international peace and security through
Page | 3 enacting numerous treaties and conventions. In the last century the term “Convention” was employed for
bilateral agreements, now it is used for formal multilateral treaties with a variety of parties. Environments
is the sum total of all surroundings of a living organism, including natural forces and other living things.
Development is a process of growing, developing and progressing, where the process of environment
development is related to sustainable development which meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The United Nations Conference
on Environment and Development, in 1992, provided the fundamental principles for achieving sustainable
development. Bangladesh is endowed with rich and diverse genetic resources of flora and fauna and we
strongly reaffirm our commitment to the Rio principles by providing article 18 (A) in The Constitution of
the People‟s Republic of Bangladesh. Implementation of United Nations conventions on environment and
development in Bangladesh may fail due to financial crisis, bindings of development partners, lack of
appropriate policies, and lack of expertness. The study will be undertaken to identify the barriers
responsible for poor implementation of UN Conventions and to recommend policy options to speed up
national and international action in terms of funding and adopting environment and development
mechanisms. The report will be presented in a descriptive pattern with some statistical analysis. This
paper will introduce the importance of the implementation of the United Nations Conventions on
Environment and Development in Bangladesh by referring institutional and procedural setbacks.

KEY WORDS: UN Conventions, Environment, Development, Sustainable Development, Climate Change

Impact, implementation, Consequences, Bangladesh
 1. INTRODUCTION
United Nations is formed to upgrade international peace and security through enacting a number of
treaties and conventions. These conventions are binding for the parties to ensure global tranquility and
durability. Bangladesh as a prospering country with total population of 15.58 million (Economic review,
2014), faces enormous challenges in coping with the infrastructure and service needs of its growing
Page | 4
population. More than 77 per cent of its population lives in the villages, and national rate of calorie intake
is approximately 2,120 kilo calorie. The projected population of the country is about 250 million by the
year 2035.About 31.2 per cent population has below US$1 income per day (W.B., 2006). Access to food,
sanitation, pure drinking water, health care, education and social security are not adequate in both urban
and rural areas of Bangladesh. Here, the term „development‟ has been in use for many decades which is
common desire for social, political and economic betterment. In very recent years development has been
further redefined to take account of its deterioration of environmental resources. Many developing
countries now face enormous pressure to over exploit the resource base both for continuing growth and
development and for sustenance and survival. It is acknowledged that, environmental deterioration can
undermine economic development. Today, there is equal concern about the ways in which environmental
degradation can slow, halt or reverse economic development. That is, the very process of development
itself cannot subsist upon a deteriorating environmental resource base; the environment cannot be
protected when development ignores the costs of environment destruction and the necessity of
replenishment and enhancement.

1.1. CONVENTION
A Convention is a set of approved, stipulated or generally agreed values, norms, social norms or criteria,
mostly taking the form of custom. It is a selection from among two or more alternatives, where the rule or
alternative is agreed upon among participants. Frequently the word refers to unwritten customs shared
throughout a community those customs may become law and regulatory legislation, and may be
introduced to formalize or enforce the convention.

1.2. ENVIRONMENT
The term „environment‟ is a vast one: ranging from microbe action to the size of world population
(Nasreen, 2000). Environment has been defined as “the aggregate of all the external conditions and
influences affecting the life and development of an organism” (The Webster‟s New Collegiate
Dictionary). The aim then, with either individual organism or communities, is to distinguish between
factors arising from outside the system and factors inherent in the system itself. This sounds simple
enough, but in practice the distinction between organism and environment is not always easy to make
(International Encyclopedia of Social Sciences, 1984:91).

1.3. DEVELOPMENT
Development is “a specified state of growth or advancement; a new and advanced product or idea; an
event constituting a new stage in a changing situation.” (Oxforddicationaries.com). It implies both goals
and means, where modernization and industrialization have been viewed both as goals and as means of
development, but experiences of pollution, resource degradation, and depletion (Angel and Rock, 2005)
imply that “modernity no longer seems so attractive in view of ecological problems” (Pieterse, 2010, p.1).
Although the scientific community agrees that climate change will alter the conditions for production and
 consumption substantially, the development discourse lacks a systemic analysis of the Earth system and
its social implications. Mainstreaming as a process may not solve burning social, political, and
environmental issues.

Page | 5 1.4. ENVIRONMENTAL DEVELOPMENT

To define environmental sustainability we must first define sustainability. Sustainability is the ability to
continue a defined behavior indefinitely. Basically the definition of “environmental sustainability” is
sustainable development, which postulates a desirable future state for human societies in which living
conditions and resource-use meet human needs without undermining the sustainability of natural systems
and the environment, so that future generations may also have their needs met. The term 'sustainable
development' rose to significance after it was used by the Brundland Commission in its 1987 report “Our
Common Future”. In June 1992 sustainable development gained greater attention at the United Nations
Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). In Bangladesh, as in many developing
countries, the concept „sustainable development‟ is a highly discussed topic but very little action is taken
on the basis of these discussions.

2. UN CONVENTIONS ON ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT

The United Nations Conference on the Human Environment held in Stockholm, Sweden, in June 1972
and marked the emergence of international environmental law. The Stockholm Declaration set out various
international environmental issues, including human rights, pollution prevention, natural resource
management and the relationship between the environment and development. The pioneer of sustainable
development, Gro Harlem Brundtland set up “The Brundland Commission” and the commission provided
the momentum for first Earth Summit 1992- the UNCED. The initial informal discussions on a possible
new Summit in 2002 were held in February 1998 and hosted by Derek Osborn who co-chaired the
preparatory meetings for Rio+5 and Stakeholder Forum for a Sustainable Future. The third international
conference on sustainable development aimed at reconciling the economic and environmental goals of the
global community, hosted by Brazil in Rio de Jeneiro, in June 2012.

2.1. RIO CONFERRENCE

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is an international
environmental treaty negotiated at the UNCED, informally known as the Earth Summit, held in Rio de
Janeiro in June 1992. The aim of the treaty is to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere
at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. The parties to
the convention have met annually from 1995 in Conferences of the Parties (COP) to assess progress in
dealing with climate change. The Kyoto Protocol (in 1997) was concluded and established legally binding
obligations for developed countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. The first tasks set by the
UNFCCC was for signatory nations to establish national greenhouse gas inventories of greenhouse gas
(GHG) emissions and removals, which were used to create the 1990 benchmark levels for accession of
Annex I countries to the Kyoto Protocol and for the commitment of those countries to GHG reductions.
 2.2. RIO+3
The United Nations Climate Change Conferences are yearly conferences held in the substructure of the
UNFCCC. They serve as the formal meeting of the UNFCCC Parties (COP) to assess progress in dealing
with climate change, and beginning in the mid-1990s, to negotiate the Kyoto Protocol to establish legally
binding obligations for developed countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. The first UNFCCC
Page | 6 Conference of Parties took place in Berlin, Germany, in 1995. It voiced concerns about the sufficiency of
countries abilities to meet commitments under the Body for Scientific and Technological Advice
(SBSTA) and the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI).The Berlin Mandate was successful in
establishing a process that resulted in the preparation of, and agreement on, a legally binding Protocol in
the short period of two and a half years. But as the UNFCCC prepares for the decisive COP in Paris in
late 2015, it is worth considering the current process through the prism of the Berlin Mandate.

2.3. RIO+5
Rio+5 or the Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCCC is aninternational treaty that sets binding obligations on
industrialized countries to reduce emissions of Green House Gases (GHG). Most industrialized countries
and some central European economies in transition agreed to legally binding reductions in greenhouse gas
emissions of an average of 6 to 8% below 1990 levels between the years 2008–2012, defined as the first
emissions budget period. The United States would be required to reduce its total emissions an average of
7% below 1990 levels; however Congress did not ratify the treaty after Clinton signed it. The Bush
administration clearly refused the protocol in 2001.

2.4. RIO+10
Earth Summit 2002 or The World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) took place in
Johannesburg, South Africa, in 2002. It was convened to discuss sustainable development by the United
Nations. The Johannesburg Declaration was the main outcome of the Summit which laid out the
Johannesburg Plan of Implementation as an action plan. The agreement was made to restore the world's
depleted fisheries for 2015. Instead of new agreements between governments, the Earth Summit was
organized mostly around almost 300 partnership initiatives known as Type II, as opposed to Type I
Partnerships which are the more classic outcome of international treaties. These were to be the key means
to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. These are kept in a database of Partnerships for
Sustainable Development.

2.5. RIO+ 20
The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD), also known as Earth Summit
2012 was the third international conference on sustainable development aimed at reconciling the
economic and environmental goals of the global community, hosted by Brazil in June 2012. The
conference centered on Agenda 21, the outcome document from Earth Summit 1992. That document was
considered revolutionary in that it essentially created the term sustainable development and created the
global environmental agenda for the next 20 years. The United Nations wanted Rio to endorse a “green
economy roadmap”, whereas developing countries preferred establishing new “sustainable development
goals” to better protect the environment, guarantee food and power to the poorest, and alleviate poverty.
The primary result of the conference was the nonbinding document- "The Future We Want”, in it the
 parties renewed their political commitment to sustainable development and declared their commitment to
the promotion of a sustainable future. The document largely reaffirms previous action plans like Agenda
21.

Page | 7

3. ENVIRONMENTAL PROFILE OF BANGLADESH AND A PARTY TO THE

CONVENTIONS
Bangladesh is a deltaic which shares common border with India and Myanmar. The Bay of Bengal is
situated in the south. The total area of the country is 147,570 sq. km. Except the hilly areas in the
southeast and north-east, and high lands in the northern and northwestern regions, the country basically
consists of low, flat and fertile lands. It has around 310 rivers with a total length of 24,140 km.

These rivers carry a total of approximately 1250

million units of water per year, 93% of which
flows into Bangladesh from India. The average
annual rainfall varies from 1400 mm to 4500
mm. But overall, annual mean temperature over
Bangladesh is likely to increase by 0.22 degree C
and 0.41 degree C by 2050 and 2100 years
respectively.
Bangladesh is endowed with rich and diverse
genetic resources of flora and fauna because of
its bio-climatic environment and its location at
the complex interface of the Himayalan and the
Southeast Asian bio-geographic regions. The
forests cover about 17% of the total land area.
The Sundarbans, the largest mangrove forest in
the world is located in the south-western part of
the country. A few hundred species and sub-
Source: www.bhcanberra.com/tourism.php
species of birds including many migratory and
seasonal birds are found in the country.

Bangladesh as a member of United Nations strongly reaffirms its commitment to the Rio principles, the
full implementation of Agenda 21 and the Program for the further implementation of Agenda 21. It is also
committed to bring about the internationally agreed development goals, including those contained in the
United Nations Millennium Declaration and in the outcomes of the major United Nations conferences and
international agreements since 1992.

4. IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE IN BANGLADESH

Bangladesh is facing serious environmental degradation due to global warming, ozone layer depletion,
unplanned urbanization and arsenic contamination in the ground water. The various aspects of this
degradation and its reflection on development agenda are discussed below:
 4.1. NATURAL DIGASTER
Cyclone causes damage and deaths almost every year in Bangladesh. Cyclones occurred in 1970, 1988,
1991 and 1998 causing loss of millions of human lives, livestock and damage to infra structure (Ahmad
Page | 8 1995:46). Devastating cyclone also hit in 2007 and 2009 in
the coastal area of Bangladesh.
Disasters can devastate the environment, but the women
have to still perform their regular duties like preparation of
food, collection of water and fuel, often under impossible
circumstances. The women have to survive by adopting
strategies to cope up with all odds of nature and the
society (Ahmed, 1995:68).

4.2. LAND DEGRADATION Source: www.dwan.com

According to The World Health Organization (WHO), 37
million people in the developing world suffered acute or chronic poisoning due to exposure to toxic
pesticides (Khan, 1995:62). Each year, nearly 10 million hectares of land are permanently degraded. Land
degradation affects some 250 million people directly, and the livelihoods of nearly a billion more may be
at some risk. It has become a major problem in Bangladesh now.

4.3. DEFORESTATION
The causes of deforestation in Bangladesh are due to heavy demands for forest products and fuel wood,
and conversion of forest land to such other uses as agricultural, industrial, urban development and of
infrastructures for transportation, energy production and so on. Nasreen and Hossain, (2004) argue that
the forest cover in Bangladesh has declined from about 15 percent of the total area to 5 per cent. The
environmental outcomes of deforestation are soil degradation, flooding, erosion and above all the danger
of climate change (Nasreen and Hossain, 2004). Indeed, unplanned urbanization and the commercial
logging of woods caused severe environmental degradation and ecologically imbalanced situation in
Bangladesh.

4.4. FLOODS
The country experienced 30 damaging floods between 1954
and 1998, of which 12 were severe and 5 were catastrophic.
The occurrence of flood experienced by Bangladesh is
deemed to be the worst in the globe, both in terms of
duration and damage. Abnormal floods submerge about 60
percent of the land, damage crops, property; disrupt
economic activities and cause diseases and loss of life Source: www.nccbd.org
beyond all proportion (Nasreen, 2004).
 4.5. DROUGHTS AND ARIDITY
Among the environmental problems in Bangladesh, land degradation due to aridity and loss of crops due
to drought may have caused more human sufferings than Chart 2: Summary of Drought Severity Areas in
any other problem in this region. Evaporation rate in Bangladesh by Crop Season (in M ha)
most of these areas is high for more than 7 months than
Page | 9 the participation rate. Drought Class Rabi Pre-Kharif Kharif

Withdrawal of ground water for irrigation function is not Very Severe 0.446 0.403 0.344
adequately recharged. Thus the aquifer level of ground Severe 1.71 1.15 0.74
water is going down steadily. The northwestern part is
prone to drought mainly because of rainfall Moderate 2.95 4.76 3.17
inconsistency in the pre-monsoon and the post monsoon Slight 4.21 4.09 2.90
periods.
Inadequate pre-monsoon showers, a delay in the onset of No Drought 3.17 2.09 0.68

the rainy season or an early departure of the monsoon Non-T.Aman 4.71

may create drought conditions in Bangladesh, and
Source: Karim and Iqbal, (2001)
adversely affect crop output (Karim and Iqbal, 2001).

4.6. UNPLANNED URBANIZATION

The problems relating to urban water and sanitation, solid waste disposal and worsening transport related
or vehicular air pollution, make the cities of the country a place for dangerous health hazards. It has been
estimated that 25,000 deaths are caused annually from air pollution related health impacts. Unplanned
high rise buildings, inadequate sewage infrastructure, mushroom growth of slums, poor transport system,
uncontrolled urban land use, unplanned industrial activities and defective solid waste management are
some of the factors responsible for unsustainable urban growth. The following figure shows the quantity
of air pollution in various part of the Dhaka city:

4.7. ARSENIC CONTAMINATION IN THE GROUND WATER

Arsenic contamination of ground water is the upcoming catastrophic disaster for Bangladesh. Arsenic
affected 61 of the 64 districts where arsenic levels have been found to be above 0.05 mg/liter, the
nationally accepted standard in Bangladesh (Nasreen, 2002). Data shows that without considering the
issue of arsenic contamination, 98.2 percent of the population of Bangladesh is using improved drinking
water source; 63.6 percent of population is using improved sanitation in 2011.

4.8. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ON SHRIMP CULTURE

Ecological effects of shrimp farming include mangrove conversion into ponds, use of chemicals, artificial
food supply in shrimp field leading to water pollution
and chemical residue runoff, dumping of pond effected
in to water bodies which affect neighboring ecosystems
and allowing intrusion of salt water in the shrimp field
gradually affects the homestead plants, trees and other
vegetations. This initiates a process of self destruction
by breaking the natural food chain with the destruction
of mangroves due to increasing encroachment with
consequent multifarious natural disaster. Source: www.bd.undp.org
 4.9. ENERGY DISASTER AND ENVIRONMENT
The fire at the Magurchara gas field (14 June, 1997) from an explosion devastated a large part of the
forest and several tea gardens in the gas field vicinity of Sreemongal under Maulovi Bazar district in the
Page | 10 eastern part of Bangladesh. The unprecedented fire, which continued for several months, caused
irreparable environmental disasters and hazards in the region. Again similar disaster (in January 8, 2005)
in another gas field namely in Tangratila caused even greater hazards both in the environmental, socio-
economic as well as human sufferings. The damage to the soil and ecology may be even greater. The lack
of adequate regulations or their enforcement, the government seems to have given exploration contracts to
companies with inadequate technical and financial resources. Often these companies have poor safety and
environmental records (Nasreen, 2005).

4.10. WATER LODGGING

The water logging problem itself is the consequence of water sector development plans undertaken in the
second half of 20th century (Mohammed Ziaul Haider and Nurun Naher Moni,2009). The plans failed
to materialize long run sustained development of the people and locality of the south-west region of
Bangladesh. Inundation of agricultural land, reduction in agricultural production, low-income level,
unemployment, underemployment, poverty and migration are the main economic consequences of the
water logging issue.

4.11. DESERTIFICATION
Although Bangladesh is predominantly a riverine country, northwestern region is threatened by
desertification. The ratio of cultivable land to rural population (acre/ person) has decreased in the
northwestern region (Rajshahi Division) by 23.2% as compared to a decreased ratio of 17.2% in the
whole of the country (GOB- World Bank, 2000).
Some geographers and ecologists claims that there is evidence of desertification from the very dry soil
conditions in the Barind Tract region and the white reflectance of the soil surface on air photos and
satellite imageries. The soils presumably always were dry in the dry season because of the very low
moisture holding capacity of their silty upper layers and the heavy clay substratum.

4.12. GLOBAL WARMING

Over the past 100 years, the broad deltaic region
of Bangladesh has warmed by about 0.5 degree
centigrade. In the future, Bangladesh may get
warmer and wetter. Bangladesh is projected to be
0.5 to 2.0 degree centigrade warmer than today by
the year 2030. The best estimate is a 10 to 15% Source: www.wateraid.com
increase in average monsoon rainfall by the year
2030. It is estimated that due to the predicted rise in sea levels, the 65 per cent of the population who are
currently vulnerable to floods, may increase to more than 90 per cent with the possibilities of about 5
million people being severely affected by inundation.
 5. IMPLEMENTATION OF UN CONVENTIONS ON ENVIRONMENT AND
Page | 11 DEVELOPMENT
Bangladesh has gone through the preliminary stage of the implementation of the convention. Monitoring
and evaluation process may begin only after pilot projects are initiated. Bangladesh will follow the logical
framework approach for proper monitoring and evaluation of projects related to implementation of the
United Nations conventions on Environment and Development as advocated in the UNFCCC guideline
for country report.

5.1. STATUS OF IMPLEMENTION

The Government is concerned about environmental issues in general and the concern is reflected in the
different policy initiatives that have been taken by the government. The major policy initiatives, strategies
and plans emphasized environment and natural resource management, land management, and forest
development with a view to achieve sustainability in resource conservation and utilization. These policies
and strategies have relevance to implement United Nations conventions on environment and
development.

Chart 5: International Convention, Treaty and Protocol and Place and Year of Signing

N Convention, Treaty and Protocol and Place and Year Signed Ratified or Being
o of Signing Accessed Ratified

1 Convention on Wetlands of International Importance 20.04.92 (ratified)

especially as Waterfowl Habitat (Ramsar, 197 1)

2 Convention on International Trade in Endangered 20.11.8 18.02.82

Species of Wild Fauna and flora (Washington, 1973.) 1

3 Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer 02.08.90 (AC) 3 1.
(Vienna, 1985.) 10.90 (entry into
force)

4 Basel Convention on the Control of Trans-boundary 01.04.93 (AC)

Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal
(Basel, 1989.)

5 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate 09.06.9 16.02.94

Change (New York, 1992) 2

6 Convention on Biological Diversity, (Rio De Janeiro, 05.06.9 20.03.94

1992) 2

7 International Convention to Combat Desertification, 21.06.9 October

(Paris 1994.) 4 1995
 8 Convention on the Prohibition of Military or Any Other 03.10.79 (AC)
Hostile Use of Environmental Modification Techniques, (entry into force)
(Geneva, 1976.)

Source: Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of the people‟s Republic of Bangladesh.
Page | 12
5.2. ENVIRONMENTAL STRATEGIES OF GOVERNMENT
The „Ministry of Environment and Forest (MOEF)‟ of Bangladesh is primarily responsible for
environmental protection. The MOEF has taken some steps to control the environmental pollution of
Bangladesh.

a) National Environmental Management Action Plan (NEMAP): The government has taken a
project named NEMAP to integrate environment with the development in a policy framework. It
provides a guideline for promoting effective management of resources, raising awareness among the
people and improvement of environmental degradation.

b) Environmental Acts, Rules and Laws: The government of Bangladesh has modified environmental
acts, rules and laws to improve environmental condition. Environment court has already been
established to take prompt legal action against environmental pollution.

c) Control of Air Pollution: The department of environment has taken some measures for the
identification and control of polluting industries, protecting habitats, examining the use of
compressed natural gas in industries, setting environmental standards and controlling river and
automobile pollution on environmental management.

d) Banning of Polyethylene Bags: Most of the sewage lines of Dhaka city have been blocked by
indiscriminate dumping of polyethylene bags over the years. The government has banned the
production, marketing and use of polyethylene bags up to 20 microns thick or less from 01 March
2002.

e) Urban Transport Project: An Urban Transport Project has been launched by the Government to
improve traffic system, envisage good bus services, improves road networks by constructing over-
bridges, fly-overs, underpasses and envisages a positive role for non-motorized transport.

f) Knowledge Enrichment Program: Environmental education program has been incorporated in

primary and higher education. Many universities have introduced various curriculum and projects on
environmental issue. Government organizations as well as NGOs present meetings and seminars to
raise public awareness on the environmental issue.

g) Control of Arsenic Pollution: The Government has taken four Strategies to mitigate the arsenic
problem. These are as follows:

(1). Immediate detection of the arsenic effected patients and ensure their proper treatment.
(2). Identify the arsenic contaminated tube wells, labeled them with red color for danger ones and
green with safe ones.
(3). Detect the reasons for arsenic contamination in soil water and find out the sources of safe
drinking water.
 (4). Conduct health education campaigns and grow awareness among the people.

5.3. DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES OF GOVERNMENT

The Bangladesh retains a deep commitment to social solidarity and to a progressive development agenda.
Page | 13 Many MDG successes, in areas ranging from poverty reduction to exceptional improvements in infant
mortality, to greater gender equity have been secured. The Government has also shown itself, able to
recognize delivery weaknesses and marshal resources to ensure overall development as follows:
a) Planning for Development: Executive Committee of National Economic Council (ECNEC) is
Bangladesh‟s highest authority for approving of development activities, headed by the Prime Minister
and consists of the Central Cabinet Ministers, guides the planning process. Plan size and actual
expenditure (in million Taka) and GDP growth rate of past plans (at respective base year prices) are
shown below:

Chart 6: National Five-Year Plans and Their Growth Rate

Plan Plan Size Actual Expenditure Growth Realized
(Million.tk) (Million tk.) Target Growth (%)
(%)
1st Five Year Plan 44,550 20,740 5.50 4.00
Two Year Plan 38,610 33,590 5.60 3.50
2nd Five Year Plan 172,000 152,970 5.40 3.80
rd
3 Five Year Plan 386,000 270,110 5.40 3.80
4th Five Year Plan 620,000 598,480 5.00 4.15
5th Five Year Plan 1969,521 1717,878 7.00 5.21
th
6 Five Year Plan 1347,000 8.00
Source: Planning Commission, Ministry of Planning, Bangladesh.

“Five Years Plan” has given emphasis on poverty alleviation, increased self-reliance and meeting
the basic needs of the people with particular focus on human resources development, women in
development and environmental sustainability. The policy thrust and key elements of growth and
conservation strategy in development process to prevent land degradation and improve the capacity
for sustainable development in the vulnerable areas.

b) The Master Plan for Forestry: The Master Plan for Forestry Sector aims to protect land against
degradation by soil erosion, floods, landslides, and desertification. The plan also conserve ecosystems
and genetic resources, promote sustainable use of non-timber forest products, and contribute to the
growth of local and national economies by managing forest, developing forest-based industries.

c) Formulation of National Environment Action Plan (NEMAP): The formulation of the NEMAP in
1995 is the major policy document used by the Government for environmental activities in the
country and the government's strategy now recognized the inseparable links between environmental
degradation, poverty, and population growth and the implications for natural resource management.

d) Agenda 21 Implementation Plan: Bangladesh recently formulated its National Agenda-21 program
in line with UNCED Agenda-21where provisions had been kept for action plans. The Agenda 21 calls
 for implementing integrated resource management programs in the ecologically sensitive areas,
integrating desertification combating policies in the national development plans, developing an early
warning system, expanding watershed conservation activities with people's participation and
continuing forest management through users‟ participation.

Page | 14 5.4. PROBLEMS BEHIND IMPLEMENTATION

A number of factors are involved in this failure of implementation which includes lack of good
governance and political institution, corruption, western development model, unplanned use of natural
resources, defective industrialization and urbanization process, social disparity, exploitation, inequality
etc. Problems behind implementation are:
 The United Nations conventions on environment and development are not basically formulated
considering the position of developing countries.
 Government policies can create or reinforce vicious cycle of poverty-environment interaction.
 The poor have inadequate access to information and expertise, which limits their capacity to
protect their environment and improve their livelihoods and well-being.

6. SUGGESTING MEASURES
The government has taken some steps to improve the pollution control of Bangladesh, but these steps are
inadequate. As a result, few more steps may also be taken to improve the environmental degradation:
1.1 Environmental Technologies and Methods: Environmental technologies and methods such as
Geographic Information Systems (GIS), remote sensing and environmental impact assessment might
be used for integrated policy formulation, decision-making, evaluation and monitoring of
environment.
1.2 Development of Environmental Record: A comprehensive environmental database may be made
and the environmental planners might have the access for environmental up-gradation, planning and
management.
1.3 Environmental Teaching and Consciousness: Formal and informal methods of education might be
adopted through local media, seminars, celebrations, workshops, walks and student competitions to
aware the people regarding the process of environmental degradation.
1.4 Industrial and Solid Waste Management: The government might take appropriate measures to
monitor emission limits and Market Based Incentives (MBI) for reducing pollution control. The
industries might be given both technical and financial support for introducing mitigation measures,
promoting green technologies, using less pollution technologies and recycling the waste.
1.5 Enforcement of Rules and Regulation: Environmental Conservation Rules of 1997, traffic rules and
other relevant environmental laws might be enforced further to punish the violation of the emission
limits.
1.6 Metropolitan Transport Management: Government must strengthen vehicle emission standards,
complete the emission inventory and conduct an investigation on the emission control measures.
Government must replace old vehicles, two-stroke engine vehicles, improve traffic conditions and
promote an equivalent and efficient alternative public transportation services to improve metropolitan
transport management.
 1.7 Participatory Agenda: A more comprehensive, coordinated and participatory agenda of action is
needed to ensure environmental sustainability. The national and international action in terms of
funding and adopting sustainable development mechanisms should speed up.
1.8 Reform development strategy: Reformation in domestic international and industrial policies is
necessary. The apparatuses of these strategies of United Nations do no suit with the environment of
Page | 15 our country. The implementation of Agenda 21, including through the mobilization of financial and
technological resources, with capacity building programs should be increased.

7. CONCLUDING REMARKS
Finally, environmental issues have become major concerns due to impact on public health and
development of Bangladesh. Environmental problems occur mainly due to population growth,
urbanization, industrialization, rapid rise in transportation, inadequate and improper traffic management,
poor sanitation systems and inefficient solid waste management (Rahman M. Mahbubur, 2003). A healthy
environment is crucial in order to meet the primary needs of the population. Environmental issues need to
be dealt with the participation of all concerned, with the government and citizens at the relevant levels.
Moreover international organizations and multinational corporations most often are pressing the
government to adopt unsustainable policy, which cause serious degradation to the environment in
developing countries including Bangladesh. The government has taken many policies most of which are
not favorable to agriculture and environmental development, rather cause deterioration in the
environment. A number of criticisms have emerged against conventional sustainable development
approach in context of reducing poverty and maintaining sustainability in resource management. In
Bangladesh, we have adopted western development model in the context of poverty reduction, population
control and sustainable resource management. But this kind of development models has failed to reduce
poverty, population growth as well as environmental sustainability in a meaningful way. There is a need
for comprehensive strategy to maintain sustainable resources as a means to reduce degradation and to
ensure overall development.

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