Coastal Zone Policy
Thursday, 24 September 2009
The Coastal Zone Policy of Bangladesh covers 19 southern districts with a land area of 47,201 square kilometres having about 35.08 million (three crore) inhabitants.
The coast of Bangladesh is known as a zone of vulnerabilities as well as opportunities. It is horizontal to natural disasters like tropical storm, storm surge and downpour. The mixture of natural and artificial hazards such as earthquake, water and soil salinity, various forms of pollution, high arsenic contents in land water, water logging, risks from weather change, etc., have affected life and livelihoods adversely in the coastal zone, slowing down the speed of communal and financial developments in this area.
Improving the livelihood of the coastal people, ensuring the optimum use of coastal resources and creating an enabling institutional environment may reduce the coastal vulnerabilities. The Ministry of Water Resources has formulated the Coastal Zone Policy. This was approved by the cabinet on January 17, 2005 and also published in the official Gazette on March 2005. But the policy has not been made yet effective for helping to put in concerted efforts for development of the coastal zone of Bangladesh.
Mohammad Rajja
Gono Bishwabidyalay, Savar, Dhaka.
arnold_raza@yahoo.com
The coast of Bangladesh is known as a zone of vulnerabilities as well as opportunities. It is horizontal to natural disasters like tropical storm, storm surge and downpour. The mixture of natural and artificial hazards such as earthquake, water and soil salinity, various forms of pollution, high arsenic contents in land water, water logging, risks from weather change, etc., have affected life and livelihoods adversely in the coastal zone, slowing down the speed of communal and financial developments in this area.
Improving the livelihood of the coastal people, ensuring the optimum use of coastal resources and creating an enabling institutional environment may reduce the coastal vulnerabilities. The Ministry of Water Resources has formulated the Coastal Zone Policy. This was approved by the cabinet on January 17, 2005 and also published in the official Gazette on March 2005. But the policy has not been made yet effective for helping to put in concerted efforts for development of the coastal zone of Bangladesh.
Mohammad Rajja
Gono Bishwabidyalay, Savar, Dhaka.
arnold_raza@yahoo.com