Dhaka, August 19, 2026: Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Abdul Awal Mintoo and UNICEF Bangladesh Acting Representative Gillian Mellsop have discussed strengthening cooperation to protect children and adolescents from the impacts of climate change and make essential social services more climate-resilient.
Mellsop met the minister at his office on Wednesday. The discussions focused on climate-resilient education, healthcare, nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene services, as well as broader measures to protect children from climate-related hazards.
The minister said children and young people are central to building a climate-resilient Bangladesh and should therefore be given priority in national climate action plans.
“Children and young people are the architects of a climate-resilient Bangladesh, both today and in the future,” he said, adding that the ministry is working to implement relevant plans in line with the Prime Minister’s special directives.
Mellsop thanked the minister following the Cabinet’s approval of the National Strategy and Multi-Year Action Plan for a Lead-Free Bangladesh (2026–2035). She assured him of UNICEF’s full support for implementing the plan.
Mintoo said the ministry would further strengthen initiatives to protect children from lead exposure as well as other forms of environmental pollution.
Bangladesh has continued to play a leading role internationally in addressing climate-related risks. Although children bear little responsibility for causing the climate crisis, they are among its most vulnerable victims.
According to a recent UNICEF report, around 58.8 million children in Bangladesh are exposed to at least one climate-related hazard. Nearly nine out of every 10 children face three or more climate-related hazards simultaneously.
Based on government-approved data, the ministry and UNICEF will jointly develop a district-level Children’s Climate Risk Index (CCRI) and Climate Landscape Analysis for Children (CLAC). The tools will help identify the most vulnerable districts and facilitate targeted investment in climate adaptation and other climate-related sectors.
UNICEF is also supporting the inclusion of children and adolescents in Bangladesh’s plans to implement its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC 3.0) for reducing carbon emissions.
The cooperation covers education, health and nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene, in coordination with the Department of Environment and relevant ministries. UNICEF will also continue supporting assessments of the feasibility of installing rooftop solar power systems at government schools and healthcare facilities.
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change will continue supporting UNICEF and relevant ministries in developing models for environmentally friendly and disaster-resilient schools.
The meeting also discussed incorporating climate and environmental education into the national curriculum, organising the Youth Climate Negotiators Fellowship and Youth Climate Summit, and increasing the participation of student and adolescent networks in the national tree-planting programme.
Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening partnerships with development partners to help ensure a safe, habitable and climate-resilient Bangladesh for future generations.
Dr. Md. Saidur Rahman, Additional Secretary of the Ministry’s Environment Pollution Control and Law Wing, along with officials from UNICEF Bangladesh and the ministry, attended the meeting.
