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The World Environment Day will be observed in the country as elsewhere around the world on Wednesday in a befitting manner.
The theme of this year's Environment Day is 'Land restoration, desertification and drought resilience', said Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Saber Hossain Chowdhury while talking to reporters after a press conference over the World Environment Day and Environment Fair 2024 and National Tree Planting Campaign and Tree Fair 2024.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the programme by planting trees as a chief guest at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre around 10 am on Wednesday.
Bangabandhu Award for Wildlife Conservation 2023 and 2024, National Environment Medal 2023, Prime Minister's National Award for Plantation 2023 will be distributed.
Besides, dividend checks will be distributed among the beneficiaries of Social Forestry on the occasion.
Bangladesh Television, Bangladesh Betar will air special programmes highlighting the significance of Environment Day.
Newspapers will publish a special supplement on this occasion.
Besides, an environment fair will be held at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar from June 5 to June 11.
The tree fair will continue till July 13 starting from June 5. The fair will run from 09 am to 8 pm every day.
The National Tree Planting Campaign and Tree Fair 2024 will be held under the theme of “Decorate the country with trees, enrich Bangladesh” ( Brikkho Diye Sajai Desh, Sammriddha Kori Bangladesh.), said the Environment minister.
The minister said that the World Environment Day is being celebrated in all districts and upazilas of the country and in 100 educational institutions of Dhaka city.
On the occasion of Environment Day, children's painting, educational institution debate and slogan competition are organised.
Tree fairs will be organized at national, divisional, district and upazila levels. On this occasion, a painting and writing competition has been organised for children.
Tree saplings will be distributed in various educational institutions.
Coordinated activities have been undertaken to restore encroached forest land. As a result, from October, 2020 to April, 2024, about 30,000 acres of forest land across the country has been cleared and afforestation has been completed, he said.
The minister said that the government has continued the program of afforestation and forest conservation, restoration of degraded forests and sustainable forest management, a total of 2 lakh 17 thousand 402 hectare blocks and 30 thousand 252 seedling km from 2009-2010 to 2022-23 financial year.
Strip gardens have been created and 11.21 million saplings have been distributed and planted.
This year, 8 crore 33 lakh 27 thousand saplings will be planted throughout the country during the monsoon season.
On the eve of the day, President Mohammed Shahabuddin and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina issued separate messages.
In his message, the president said innovative land management methods should be adopted by integrating science-based knowledge with traditional knowledge to achieve land reclamation, prevention of desertification and drought tolerance.
"In addition, if various methods of sustainable land management, including tree plantation, are adopted to rejuvenate the degraded land, biodiversity will be protected, as well as it will be possible to ensure safe livelihood of the people," he said.
All will have to work together to build a hunger and poverty-free 'Sonar Bangla' as dreamt by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and a developed and prosperous 'Smart Bangladesh' declared by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Only then will it be possible to ensure a healthy life for the next generation, the president said in this message.
The Prime Minister in her message said "Protecting the environment is one of my ten initiatives. Our pledge on World Environment Day is to implement the necessary activities to ensure sustainable land management, create safe homes and jobs for future generations through land reclamation activities, protect the natural environment, conserve wetlands and biodiversity, and reduce the tendency of desertification and drought."
"I hope that observing World Environment Day will increase public awareness and public involvement to protect the environment and ensure sustainable management of the environment," she said.
