On the longest beach in the world, Mahboub Alam turns on the engine of his 400-pound quad bike – paid for by British taxpayers. “Since I had this, my life has been so much better,” he says. “And at the same time, I`m protecting the environment.” That`s a strange claim because the machine spits carbon out of its high-octane fuel. According to wildlife experts, the bikes he and others rent for sightseeing rides also crush the beach`s red crabs, the local mascot of this 75-mile stretch of sand that stretches from Cox`s Bazar in southeastern Bangladesh to the Burmese border. But you can see why Mahboub manages – he was told that the reason foreign aid chiefs lent him British taxpayers` money to buy his bike was to protect Bangladesh from the ravages of climate change. Before obtaining it, he made a living felling wood in nearby forests. The theory is that his new “alternative livelihood” means that these trees will be saved while he is encouraged to plant new ones. Bangladesh`s forests will absorb more carbon dioxide, thereby reducing the country`s net emissions. “Alternative lifestyle” projects for loggers, such as beach quads, were awarded to the Dhaka-based Arannayk Foundation.
It spent £2.8 million BCCRF. Other shots I saw were a village where a Buddhist tribe made raw bamboo souvenirs, a beach stall selling coconuts, and villages where women were given new stoves – to burn a little less wood. Our investigation into the story behind Alams Quad and the growing billions we will spend on climate action began with the UN climate summit in Paris last December. You become a motorcycle owner or you now own a motorcycle in Bangladesh. But did you know all the legal issues regarding motorcycles in Bangladesh? This page will help you know all the legal issues related to the motorcycle, such as motorcycle license, registration, insurance, application fees, driving laws, etc. Below are linked the best articles on legal issues>> But the ultimate nonsense? The fund sponsored by the Department for International Development behind Alams Quad has collapsed. Because the World Bank has found problems with its “governance” – and has found it impossible to establish a Bangladeshi management system that meets international standards of accountability – it is on the verge of closure, leaving millions of British money unspent and key projects cancelled or uncompleted. A DFID “review” seen by the newspaper admits that as a result, the Bangladesh Climate Change Resilience Fund (BCCRF) “will not achieve the expected results or its financial targets”. This, she admits, will have negative “political and reputational effects.” On the world`s longest beach, Mahboub Alam turns on the engine of his £400 quad bike – paid for by British taxpayers But Arannayk director Farid Uddin Ahmed admits the impending closure of the BCCRF means most of that money is wasted. According to him, such programs typically take five to eight years to become economically self-sufficient: “Because the fund closes earlier, its impact is reduced. New trees have been planted, but it will be very difficult for them to survive.
Bangladesh, sometimes called the zero point of climate change, is at the epicentre of this boom – largely the result of a diplomatic push at successive UN climate summits that, surprisingly, we can now reveal that it was funded and supported by DFID. That is why, following our previous reports, we looked at how climate aid is already being spent in Bangladesh. Now we can reveal: These include the government`s Climate Change Trust Fund programs, which have resulted in “cyclone-resistant” homes without walls — just pillars and roofs — so developers can maximize their profits, and shabby shelters and to hold back the sea. TI also noted that most systems were not built where people are vulnerable. Instead, influencers or projects such as housing that have nothing to do with climate change live there – but are located in ministers` constituencies. However, when DFID established the BCCRF in 2010, it wanted the Government of Bangladesh to be responsible as well. To reduce risks, she called on the World Bank to set up an office to enforce “transparency and accountability.” In exchange for a fee of 5% of the fund, the bank should also establish a Bangladeshi “secretariat” to assume this supervisory function. For Bangladesh, the Paris Agreement was a landslide victory. For five years, she led a group of 48 least developed countries that tried to get rich countries to provide aid beyond normal development finance to address climate change.
Mr Uddin said: “There is no window for climate aid now. It is very difficult to become a national implementing agency. The UN fund already has $10 billion, but cannot spend it because of the system. And if it`s $100 billion a year, what are they going to do? But will the “new and extra” money – promised in addition to the 0.7% – be well spent in Paris? Global think tank Transparency International rates Bangladesh at just 25 levels of anti-corruption, with any score below 50 indicating “serious” corruption. It ranks it 139th for transparency out of 168 countries. Local IT Bangladesh – itself funded by DFID – has published damning reports on the misuse of climate funds. There, the world agreed that industrialised countries like Britain must contribute £70 billion a year to the Global Green Climate Fund by 2020. The fund already stands at £7 billion, and even before the summit, David Cameron pledged £5.8 billion over the next four years – just the beginning of a huge commitment that will become increasingly onerous under the Paris Agreement.
Other DFID-funded climate programmes seem equally questionable. Further west, I saw schools equipped with new DFID-funded environmental awareness centres – classrooms with books and posters about the dangers of global warming. Some of the information they disseminated was completely false, such as the claim that CFCs cause climate change. Proper deployment and regular patrols by ATVs will prevent the smuggling of drugs and other materials across the border, he added. These vehicles are used to secure the border and prevent smuggling across the border. As a result, two ATVs were each assigned to Khanpur BOP and A Padmar Char BOP under Rajshahi BGB Battalion. Lt. Col. Ziauddin Mahmud, commander of BGB Rajshahi Battalion, said the ATV is an effective vehicle for moving around remote and inaccessible areas of the Rajshahi border, where foot patrols or patrols straddling any other type of vehicle are not possible.
Yet it has enough money to spend around £7 billion to build five huge power stations that will burn millions of tonnes of coal, the dirtiest fuel in the world. It`s not just that their emissions will dwarf the savings from subsidized forestry programs. One of the plants is located in Rampal, on the edge of the highly sensitive Sundarbans Islands, a World Heritage Site and the last refuge of the Bengal tiger. They will now be threatened by fly ash, acid sulphur and nitrogen oxides. TI also noted that most programs were not built where people are at risk – such as those most affected by hurricanes, such as people waiting for help. Bangladesh is poor – although with a sustained growth rate of six percent by 2021, it is becoming a “middle-income country” according to World Bank definitions. DFID has pledged £75 million. By the end of 2013, other donors, including the EU, the US and Switzerland, had brought the total to £140 million. This is what the BCCRF was supposed to become, but now it will not do it anymore. The future looked bright. According to DFID, the BCCRF wanted to set a “transformative” example of how poor countries can take care of the billions in climate aid that would go their way. Only a year later, that dream was shattered.
According to DFID`s review, the World Bank`s Bangladeshi secretariat had “not functioned” and its staff had been laid off. Due to concerns about the “governance” of the fund, the bank withdrew. As a result, there is now “no prospect of completing the full list of planned projects or spending the entire budget.” .
