1.8m tonnes of crops lost to natural disasters this yr
Sunday, 25 November 2007
An eminent economist said Saturday that natural disasters have cost the country at least 1.8 million tonnes in destroyed crops this year alone, reports bdnews24.com.
Bangladesh Economic Association president Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad made the estimate at a seminar on climate change at the Jatiya Press Club, organised by the NGO Coastal Trust Bangladesh.
"The two floods and cyclone Sidr damaged an anticipated 18 lakh (1.8 million) tonnes in potential food crops this year," Kholiquzzaman said.
Kholiquzzaman stressed the critical role of agricultural rehabilitation programmes to make up for the loss.
"It has to be ensured that food reaches disaster affected people. Loans are not enough, affected people have to be provided with houses using grants."
The economist said the flooding earlier in the year had badly affected the land as well as houses and the road network, which had led to a decline in the productivity of the agricultural sector.
"Bangladesh does not have any long-term plans to cope with disaster. We simply rush to the scene when a disaster takes place," Kholiquzzaman added.
Coastal Trust Bangladesh researcher Md Shamsuddoha said cyclone Sidr had cost the shrimp sector Tk 2.5 billion, while the agricultural sector as a whole had incurred losses of Tk 25 billion, with other losses amounting to Tk 46 billion.
"According to a preliminary estimate, it will take 40 years to make up for losses in the Sundarbans caused by Cyclone Sidr," Shamsuddoha said.
He said cyclones worldwide claimed 0.25 million lives between 1980 and 2000, with 60 per cent of the deaths coming from Bangladesh.
Bangladesh Economic Association president Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad made the estimate at a seminar on climate change at the Jatiya Press Club, organised by the NGO Coastal Trust Bangladesh.
"The two floods and cyclone Sidr damaged an anticipated 18 lakh (1.8 million) tonnes in potential food crops this year," Kholiquzzaman said.
Kholiquzzaman stressed the critical role of agricultural rehabilitation programmes to make up for the loss.
"It has to be ensured that food reaches disaster affected people. Loans are not enough, affected people have to be provided with houses using grants."
The economist said the flooding earlier in the year had badly affected the land as well as houses and the road network, which had led to a decline in the productivity of the agricultural sector.
"Bangladesh does not have any long-term plans to cope with disaster. We simply rush to the scene when a disaster takes place," Kholiquzzaman added.
Coastal Trust Bangladesh researcher Md Shamsuddoha said cyclone Sidr had cost the shrimp sector Tk 2.5 billion, while the agricultural sector as a whole had incurred losses of Tk 25 billion, with other losses amounting to Tk 46 billion.
"According to a preliminary estimate, it will take 40 years to make up for losses in the Sundarbans caused by Cyclone Sidr," Shamsuddoha said.
He said cyclones worldwide claimed 0.25 million lives between 1980 and 2000, with 60 per cent of the deaths coming from Bangladesh.