President Iajuddin Ahmed Monday urged the world community to take urgent measures to address the challenges of global warming to make the planet a better place for living.
"Bangladesh may lose one-third of its landmass and the entire South Asian coastal belt will be affected due to the rise of sea level, which is the direct outcome of climate change", Iajuddin, also an eminent soil scientist, said quoting the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
The President made the observations while addressing the opening session of a six-day international symposium on 'climate change and food security in South Asia' as the chief guest at a city hotel.
Dhaka University (DU) and Ohio State University (OSU), USA have jointly organised the symposium in collaboration with World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP).
Director of Carbon Management and Sequestration Centre of OSU Rattan Lal, FAO Assistant Director General Changchui He, WMO Secretary General Michel Jarraud, Chief Adviser's Special Assistant Raja Devasish Roy and Chief Coordinator of the symposium and DU Soil Science teacher AHM Mustafizur Rahman spoke at the inaugural session with DU Vice-Chancellor SMA Faiz in the chair.
Speaking on the occasion, Rattan Lal said Bangladesh and other countries in South Asia are the frontline sates in the fight against the climate change and its adverse impacts on food security and environmental quality.
"Problems facing Bangladesh and South Asia are global issues which must be addressed at regional level through cooperation, exchange of information, joint ventures and mutual support", Lal said adding that a pilot programme to adapt and mitigate the effects of climate change in South Asia can be a role model for similar initiatives elsewhere in the developing countries.
Michel Jarraud said climate was a crucial factor in formulating sustainable development strategies and it had an overarching and cross-cutting role in the efforts to achieve the UN millennium development goals (MDGs).
"It is essential to help the poor countries reduce climate-induced risks that may impede their achievement of the MDGs notably in terms of poverty reduction and food security", Jarraud added.
He said we need a comprehensive strategy and policy framework involving integrated approach through multidisciplinary teamwork to better address the crosscutting issues like climate change and food security.
DU VC SMA Faiz said universities and research institutions across the world must ensure collaboration among themselves in basic research and dissemination of knowledge that might contribute to meeting the challenges of climate change and food security.
A total of 14 research papers on the effects of climate change were presented on the opening day of the six-day symposium. Over 300 experts from national and international meteorological, agricultural and financial departments and universities are participating at the function.
