The proposed budget has kept an allocation of Tk 22.4 billion for the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change along with Tk 1.0 billion for the Bangladesh Climate Change Trust Fund (BCCTF) in line with the government's commitment to environmental protection, climate resilience and sustainable development.
"Tackling climate change and building a greener, more sustainable Bangladesh for future generations remain among the government's key priorities," the finance minister said on Thursday in his budget speech.
He further said: "Considering the scale and severity of climate change impacts, I propose an allocation of Tk 1 billion under the Climate Change Trust Fund for fiscal year 2026-27 to implement necessary interventions."
He said the proposed budget places strong emphasis on environmental conservation, ecological restoration and large-scale afforestation initiatives aimed at maintaining ecological balance across the country.
As part of this effort, the government has planned to implement a nationwide programme to plant 250 million trees over the next five years. Afforestation activities will be expanded on marginal lands, including roadsides, highways, embankments, riverbanks and canal banks.
The minister said degraded forest areas under government management will be restored, while mangrove plantations will be established in coastal char lands to strengthen natural defences against climate-related hazards.
Afforestation programmes in institutions and homesteads, agroforestry and urban forestry initiatives will also be intensified. Particular attention will be given to restoring degraded sal forests in the Chattogram, Chittagong Hill Tracts, Sylhet and central regions of the country.
To encourage wider public participation, tree fairs will continue to be organised at national, divisional, district and upazila levels. The National Tree Plantation Awards programme will also remain in place, while beneficiaries of social forestry projects will continue to receive dividend payments, said the minister.
According to the finance minister, such initiatives are expected to generate around 350,000 direct and indirect green jobs across the country.
He also highlighted the government's "One Child, One Tree" initiative, under which an action plan has been finalised to facilitate the planting of 10 million trees at the homes of students enrolled in government primary schools.
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