Experts for collaborative approach to integrate gender into climate change policies

Speakers at the “National Consultation on Update on Climate Change Gender Action Plan” pointed out that Bangladesh needs more collaborative approaches and implementation tools and action plans to transfer all the climate change related national and international commitments into reality.

The national consultation was held at Hotel Pan Pacific Sonargaon on Wednesday (Oct 26), to share the updated Climate Change Gender Action Plan (CcGAP) and gather feedback from a wide range of officials and practitioners in climate change and gender.

“All the relevant government ministries and departments need to work together to ensure gender equality. More collaborative approaches, and strengthen capacity on specialized knowledge, and skills on gender equality, and intersectionality are crucial to take pro-active decisions to create a fair, accessible, and just society that is equitable for all” said the Secretary of the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change, Dr. Farhina Ahmed.

“I am influenced by the belief of Kamla Bhasin. And I do believe, gender equality cannot be achieved only by 9-5 work. It’s a belief, ideology, and dedication that need to be nurtured by all” she added.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) first produced the Climate Change Gender Action Plan (CcGAP) with an aim to align it with the Bangladesh Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan (BCCSAP 2009).

Since then, there has been much advancement at both international and national level, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) no 13, Paris Climate Agreement, Mujib Climate Prosperity Plan, Delta Plan, Perspective Plan, and National Adaptation Plan (NAP).

Aligning with these new key drivers for climate change, CcGAP has been revised so it can inform the necessary changes in the national policies, strategies and sectoral plans that addresses the needs of women in the context of climate change.

UN Women in partnership with Bangladesh Climate Change Trust (BCCT) under the leadership of the MoEFCC with the technical support from International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies (BCAS), and Centre for Climate Change and Environmental Research (C3ER) has led the process of updating of CcGAP.

Present as special guest, Iqbal Abdullah Harun, the additional Secretary of the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change, said “Bangladesh is excelling in gender equality as well as in climate change, we now want to merge these two to maximize the impacts of our efforts, and national tools like this gender action plan on climate change is a contribution towards that end.”   

“We all know women are more vulnerable due to the negative impact of climate change. UN Women is dedicated ensuring gender equality and the empowerment of women” said Ms. Dilruba Haider, Programme Specialist, UN Women Bangladesh.”

She added, “The revised and updated Climate Change Gender Action Plan will be a national policy document that would help all of us including the relevant government ministries and departments to integrate gender into the climate change and other relevant sectoral approaches and strategies."

The Secretary of the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change, Dr. Farhina Ahmed attended the event as Chief Guest and it was chaired by Nasir Ud Doula. Iqbal Abdullah Harun, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Md. Khairuzzaman, Director of Bangladesh Climate Change Trust (BCCT), and Ms. Dilruba Haider, Programme Specialist, UN Women spoke at the inauguration session as special guests.

Participants from the relevant government ministries and departments, development partners, UN agencies, INGOs, Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), researchers, and academia attended the event.