United Nations Deputy Secretary-General and United Nations Sustainable Development Group Chair Amina J Mohammed visited Mongla on Monday to witness the UN’s joint effort with the government to build resilience and take local action on climate change adaptation.
During her visit, she witnessed the 'Local Government Initiative on Climate Change' (LoGIC) project jointly developed in 2016 by the GoB, the European Union, the Government of Sweden, UNDP, and UNCDF, with an aim to deliver climate finance to the most vulnerable households and local government institutions and enable them to build resilience and take local action on climate change adaptation, a press release read.
During her visit, Deputy Secretary-General Mohammed had first-hand experience with the climate change adaptation initiatives led by the communities.
She met the local community who have benefitted from technical and financial support from the LoGIC project.
Through the project's Climate Resilience Funds (CRF) and capacity-building initiatives, the local community has implemented adaptive livelihood solutions such as brackish water fish polyculture, vegetable cultivation, and sheep and duck rearing, according to the press release.
In addition, they now have access to safe and clean drinking water through a community rainwater harvesting system installed at a nearby school, benefiting approximately 200 families.
Amina Mohammed expressed her appreciation for the impactful work on climate change adaptation, highlighting the importance of local leadership, innovation, and nature-based solutions in building climate resilience.
She emphasised the United Nations' commitment to supporting such initiatives and called for continued collaboration among governments, international organisations, and communities to address the urgent challenges posed by climate change.
Deputy Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Habibun Nahar, UN Resident Coordinator in Bangladesh Gwyn Lewis, Resident Representative, UNDP Bangladesh Stefan Liller, and Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the UN Muhammad Abdul Muhith were also present along with other senior officials from the government and UN.
