Call to businesses: accelerate transition to thriving clean economy

Bangladesh submitted its climate action plan called as Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) well in advance in September 2015. This was submitted for a new universal climate change agreement which is called "Paris Agreement" agreed upon by the participant countries, at the UN Climate Conference in Paris, in December 2015.
The Paris agreement will come into effect in 2020, empowering all countries to act to prevent average global temperatures rising above 2 degrees Celsius and to reap the many opportunities that arise from a necessary global transformation to clean and sustainable development.
Bangladesh signed the historic Paris Climate Agreement at the UN headquarters in New York on April 22, 2016, aiming to take multiple measures to save the world from disastrous consequences of climate change. During the signing ceremony, Bangladesh highlighted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's personal commitment to combating climate change, and reaffirmed her government's readiness to continue to work towards mobilising greater international efforts in support of comprehensively implementing the Paris Climate Agreement, where collective wisdom and commitments are essential.
Bangladesh requested the world leaders to consider the urgency of acting immediately. Bangladesh also flagged the various initiatives taken by the government to adapt to climate change in a pro-active manner through its own resources and international cooperation.
It emphasised on the need to prepare the roadmap for implementing INDC.  Bangladesh pointed out that all the countries need to be united in this collective journey, keeping in mind that one's non-compliance may threaten the existence of all. We have also urged the developed countries to take the lead in implementing Paris Agreement. Bangladesh also agreed to work together with Turkey during the lead-up to UNFCCC COP22 in Morocco until November 2016 to promote the issues of common interests, with focus on climate vulnerable LDCs.
MAJOR INITIATIVES TO FIGHT CLIMATE CHANGE: In addition to Bangladesh Climate Change Trust Fund (BCCTF), Bangladesh has formulated Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan (BCCSAP) in 2009. The BCCSAP is currently being updated by Ministry of Environment and Forests to make the strategies and actions more compatible to the changing scenarios of Climate Change impacts for Bangladesh. The Ministry of Environment and Forests also formulated Country Investment Plan (CIP) for the next five years in the field of Forestry, Environment and Climate Change. This will provide investment guidelines to the areas for next five years keeping the adaptation, mitigation in mind.
Bangladesh recognises climate change as a long-term development challenge and has made significant efforts in adapting to climate change through its long-term strategy, the National Sustainable Development Strategy (NSDS), 2010-2021 and  medium-term plans i.e., 6th and 7th Five Year Plans. Climate Change impacts will perhaps be most crucial for water, agriculture and food security issues and will ultimately affect the livelihoods of the people in a quite significant way than they affect other sectors. It is envisaged that more concerted efforts are needed to mainstream adaptation in development planning.
While adaptation is a priority, Bangladesh should also continue its efforts on Green Growth by embracing environment-friendly practices which brings considerable co-benefits. Adaptation and environment-friendly water management and agricultural production require a long-term comprehensive policy framework with incentives for private sector action and provision of optimum financial resources.
Keeping these in mind, General Economics Division (GED), Bangladesh Planning Commission is formulating "Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100"  to ensure long-term water and food security, economic growth and environmental sustainability while effectively coping with natural disasters, addressing climate change and other delta issues through robust, adaptive and integrated strategies, and equitable water governance. Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100 would be an instrument to address the long term impacts of uncertainty of climate change and would contribute to sustained economic growth of the country.  
INVOLVEMENT OF BUSINESS COMMUNITY: It is understood that the Paris Agreement on climate change is very wide in its scope and will define the global economy of the 21st century, and has immediate impact on businesses around the world. This is also true for Bangladesh.
Previous attempts to negotiate a universal agreement on climate change have either failed or resulted in a limited set of countries taking on modest greenhouse gas emissions reductions without a clear process for improving them over time. In contrast, the global community is now acting in unison and agreeing to do so for decades to come. The Paris Agreement provides for universal climate action by all countries including all major emitters, the industrialised nations, major emerging economies and the community of developing countries.
The Paris Agreement has implications for the global environment and for the global economy. Just a few years ago, up to 4.80C of global warming was projected for the end of the century, which might create an "uninsurable world". The emissions reductions agreed in Paris now draw projected warming down to 2.70C, still dangerous for nature and humankind but a genuine commitment to safeguard the global environment. Crucially, a thriving clean economy is created in that space between 4.80C and 2.70C. Collectively, the national climate plans under the Paris Agreement represent at least a USD 13.5 trillion market for the energy sector alone through 2030. Low carbon investment in energy supply, infrastructure, buildings, manufacturing, transport and land use to implement the national climate plans brought under the Paris Agreement runs into trillions of dollars.
Paris is also immediate in its impact on businesses and investors. The national climate plans are now being translated into domestic regulations. China recently integrated its climate targets into its 13th Five-Year Plan. The marketplace is also responding to the signals from Paris. Before governments return in 2020 to update or submit new national climate plans, climate action by businesses and investors has the potential to course-correct global emissions and help put the world on track to well below 20C of warming.
Paris now calls to businesses and investors to accelerate the transition to a thriving clean economy by leveraging policy certainty and seizing trillions of dollars in investment opportunities. It is time to respond to this call.
For Bangladesh, following are the areas where business communities and investors could invest for combating the climate change impacts as well as help the government to implement the Paris Agreement:
(a) Energy
    Fuel Combustion (Energy industries, Manufacturing industries and Construction, Transport, Commercial/ Institutional, Residential, Agriculture/ Forestry/Fishing, and Other)
    Fugitive emissions from fuels
    CO2 transport and storage
(b)    Industrial processes and product use
(c) Agriculture with green growth practices
(d) Land Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF)
(e)    Waste
    Gases:CO2, CH4, N2O, HFCs, PFCs, SF6 and NF3
    Coverage: 100 per cent
Side by side, Public-Private Partnership potentialities could be explored in the above areas where government and business community can work together locally or internationally to achieve the target set under Paris Agreement.
Dr. Shamsul Alam is Member (Senior Secretary), General Economics Division, Bangladesh Planning Commission.
sabau47@yahoo.com