The 4th Sustainability and Green Growth Working Committee (SGGWC) took place on 21 May 2023 at the MOEFCC Conference Room. The meeting was presided over by Dr Farhina Ahmed, Secretary of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), Government of Bangladesh.
MOEFCC Secretary emphasised controlling the use of plastics in packaging, consumer goods and textiles, and in other sectors and said it could not be controlled since it has demand on consumers’ end. “To control it, we need biobased and biodegradable packaging solutions as alternatives to conventional plastics,” she added.
“We encourage the private sector to establish their businesses not impacting the environment and biodiversity at any cost, and environmental responsibilities come ahead of business,” she said. “Environmental issues should be the built-in cost for industries and businesses; environmental governance is essential in that respect. We are addressing global concerns, but first, we need to prioritise our local concerns, and local incentivisation is more important than global incentivisation.” Referring to water scarcity in the coastal area, she cited examples of how people in coastal regions are facing environmental challenges. “We cannot jump into de-carbonisation in one go, and we need to conduct the rational exercise as we are currently in a transition, and our main agenda is to boost the economy, and once we are graduated, we can consider it,” she said.
“We can work to improve the understanding of the private sector around these materials and clarify how we can develop green industries to ensure genuine environmental benefits,” she further added. She asked for a list of good and bad performers so that bad performers might be phased out as good performers improved.
At the beginning of the meeting, BUILD CEO Ferdaus Ara Begum updated the meeting with the progress achieved in the implementation of decisions of the Sustainability and Green Growth Working Committee, and she informed about the formation of two committees on circular economy and recycling and green growth, MOEFCC pointed that DOE could start working in that respect.
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