Khondaker Golam Moazzem

UK COP26 Climate Presidency announced Global Coal to Clean Power Transition Statement on November 3. It is a major political non-binding statement where countries are invited to make their commitments on how to phase out coal-based energy use both at home and abroad and promote clean energy use.

Will the 1.5-degree Celsius target be alive by the COP26? This is the key question that has been floating around as we wait for the COP26, starting from October 31 in Glasgow, UK.

The 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) is just 15 days away. The COP26 secretariat, the UK and Italian government and governments of the participating countries are finalising their last days of preparation before meeting in Glasgow, UK from October 31 to November 12.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, in his official statement at the General Debate of the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly on September 21, announced that China would step up support for other developing countries in generating green and low-carbon energy and would not build new coal-fired power projects abroad.

Recently, reports of two contradictory developments in the power and energy sector have befuddled readers in Bangladesh.

The second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic hit Bangladesh in early March this year -- almost exactly a year after the initial wave reached the country’s shores.

John Kerry, the special presidential envoy for climate of the United States, is coming to Dhaka tomorrow. Though his visit will be of short duration, it has long and important implications for Bangladesh’s effort to address the climate vulnerabilities and seek support for sustainable solutions at global levels.

The tragic accident of Tazreen Fashions—a garment factory in Bangladesh—that took place on November 24 in 2012 was a major industrial accident in the global apparel value chain.

The government closed down 25 jute mills operated under the Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC) on July 1. It was one of the difficult political decisions taken by the ruling party since it formed the government in 2009. Such a decision hints at the major political shift of the ruling party – from promoting state-owned enterprise development towards private sector led enterprise development.

The resilience of the domestic agriculture sector mainly of the crop sector appears to be in a weak state. Without proper policy intervention the pressure on the agriculture sector would increase further and would cause a number of challenges on food security for a large section of people in the coming months.

The budget for fiscal 2020-21 is said to be one of the most challenging financial bills in Bangladesh’s recent history.