By 2050, some 17 per cent of Bangladesh's territory will be submerged by rising sea levels, resulting in a loss of 30 per cent of its agricultural land, according to an estimation. This will compel coastal communities to migrate into cities, where they are likely to be subjected to poor living conditions and unemployment.
The International Labour Organization (ILO) Bangladesh country office said these in a statement on Monday.
Bangladesh has the fifth largest population in the Asia-Pacific region. The country ranks ninth worldwide among the countries at the highest risk of climate-induced disasters, such as tropical cyclones, tornadoes, floods, coastal and riverbank erosions, droughts, and landslides, it added.
According to a latest ILO report, the Asia-Pacific region achieved social protection milestone in 2023 with over half or 53.6 per cent of its population covered by at least one social protection benefit.
However, social protection systems in the Asia-Pacific countries face both recurrent and new transformative challenges and require significant strengthening, if these are to help effectively mitigate the impacts of climate change on populations in the region.
'The Regional Companion Report for Asia and the Pacific of the World Social Protection Report 2024-26: Universal Social Protection for Climate Action and a Just Transition' - published on Monday - also highlighted that the effective social protection coverage for the region now exceeds the global average (52.4 per cent).
Despite this, some 2.1 billion people remain unprotected against various lifecycle and socio-economic risks, while progress in extending social protection has been uneven.
ILO Country Director Tuomo Poutiainen said, "As the effects of climate change are increasingly felt in Bangladesh, social protection gains greater importance for building resilience in the face of flooding, heatwaves, and other natural disasters."
Properly designed and funded effective social protection systems can greatly soften the adverse impacts of climate change, facilitate just transition, and provide income protection for those impacted, he added.
While Bangladesh has had a comprehensive National Social Security Strategy (NSSS) since 2015, it is yet to institutionalize social protection systems that can address sudden climate-induced shocks and long-term benefits of a comprehensive social protection system, added the ILO statement.
According to the report, since 2015 the effective coverage rate increased by 15.2 percentage points (from 63.3 to 78.5 per cent) in Eastern Asia; by 13.4 percentage points (32.5 to 45.9 per cent) in South-Eastern Asia; by 16.7 percentage points (18.7 to 35.4 per cent) in Southern Asia; and by 6.8 percentage points (65.7 to 72.5 per cent) in the Pacific Islands. However, significant disparities exist among the countries.
The region faces challenges in the adequacy of benefits and the financial sustainability of social protection systems. In 2023, the region spent 11.8 per cent of the GDP for social protection, well below the global average of 19.3 per cent.
Furthermore, the report revealed the effective coverage of women by at least one benefit lags that of men by 6.8 percentage points - a figure that is particularly pronounced in Southern Asia, where an 11.1 percentage-point gap exists.
"While the progress made since 2015 in the region is promising, there is still a considerable way to go to attain universal coverage and to reach adequate and comprehensive protection. Investing in comprehensive and resilient social protection systems has never been as urgent as it is today," said Chihoko Asada-Miyakawa, ILO Assistant Director-General and Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific.
"It is particularly concerning that many countries in the Asia-Pacific are experiencing a high vulnerability to climate change, but have low effective coverage. Social protection will play a vital role in supporting climate adaptation and mitigation efforts, and in facilitating a just transition, enhancing the resilience of all, and especially the vulnerable communities," said Kenichi Hirose, Senior Social Protection Specialist at the ILO Decent Work Technical Support Team for East and South-East Asia and the Pacific.
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