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UNICEF Bangladesh Acting Representative Gillian Mellsop met Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Mr. Abdul Awal Mintoo Wednesday.
The meeting was held in the Minister’s office on Wednesday. They held fruitful discussions on protecting children and adolescents from the impacts of climate change and making essential social services, including education, health, nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene, climate-resilient.
The Minister said, Children and young people are the architects of a climate-resilient Bangladesh, both today and in the future. Children and younger generations must therefore be given priority in climate action plans. He added that the Ministry was working to implement these plans in accordance with the special directives of the Hon’ble Prime Minister.
Mellsop thanked the Minister following the Cabinet’s approval of the National Strategy and Multi-Year Action Plan for a Lead-Free Bangladesh (2026-2035). She assured the Minister of UNICEF’s full cooperation in implementing the action plan. The Minister said the Ministry would further strengthen its initiatives to protect children from lead pollution and other forms of pollution.
Bangladesh has continued to play a leading role internationally in addressing climate-related risks. Although children bear no responsibility for causing the climate crisis, they are among its greatest victims. According to a recent UNICEF report, approximately 58.8 million children in Bangladesh are exposed to at least one climate-related hazard. Nearly nine out of every 10 children face three or more hazards simultaneously.
Based on government-approved data, the Ministry and UNICEF will jointly develop a district-level Children’s Climate Risk Index (CCRI) and Climate Landscape Analysis for Children (CLAC). These tools will help identify the most vulnerable districts and enable targeted investment planning in climate adaptation and other climate-related sectors.
UNICEF is supporting the inclusion of children and adolescents in plans to implement Bangladesh’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC 3.0) to reduce carbon emissions. This support is being provided across the education, health and nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene sectors in coordination with the Department of Environment and relevant ministries. UNICEF will also continue supporting assessments of the potential for rooftop solar power installations at government schools and health facilities.
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change will continue providing comprehensive support to UNICEF and the relevant ministries in developing models for environmentally friendly and disaster-resilient schools.
The meeting also discussed incorporating climate and environmental education into the national curriculum, organizing the Youth Climate Negotiators Fellowship and Youth Climate Summit, and increasing the participation of student and adolescent networks in the national tree-planting programme. The participants reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening partnerships with development partners to ensure a safe and habitable Bangladesh for future generations.
Dr. Md. Saidur Rahman, Additional Secretary of the Ministry’s Environment Pollution Control and Law Wing, along with relevant officials from UNICEF Bangladesh and the Ministry, attended the meeting.
