Dev planning must put environment, biodiversity, public health at the core: Rizwana

Environment, Forest and Climate Change Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan today (17 December) said development planning must adopt integrated and forward-looking decisions with environment, biodiversity, and public health at its centre. 

She said when environmental and ecological considerations are sacrificed in the name of development, society ultimately bears the cost. 

"While roads and infrastructure can be built, a Sundarbans or a river cannot be recreated," she said, adding that climate change, pandemics, and environmental crises repeatedly remind us that all elements of nature are deeply interconnected and that humans are not owners of nature, but an inseparable part of it.

Rizwana, also adviser for the Ministry of Water Resources and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, made the remarks at a seminar titled "One Health Initiatives: Opportunities, Challenges and Future Strategies," at a city hotel.

Speaking as the chief guest, she observed that excessive process-oriented complexities, weak inter-ministerial coordination, and prolonged decision-making timelines remain major barriers to implementing One Health initiatives. 

To address these challenges, Rizwana emphasised the need for establishing effective advisory committees at national and district levels and for designating clear focal points in every ministry.

She further said increasing manpower, expanding online processes, and strengthening coordination with the Planning Division, the Ministry of Public Administration, and the Ministry of Finance would help accelerate project implementation. 

Drawing on practical experience, she pointed out that in many cases a significant portion of a five-year project timeline is consumed solely by land acquisition procedures, underscoring the urgent need for transparent and effective reforms to overcome this bottleneck.

Rizwana stressed that One Health is not merely a technical framework; it is a social and ethical value system. 

"The rationale for protecting wildlife and pursuing nature-based development must be clearly communicated to people at all levels of society. Without shared social values, no development initiative can be sustainable." 

She expressed optimism that the government would work earnestly to further strengthen One Health initiatives through capacity building, policy reforms, and effective coordination.

Speaking at the seminar, Fisheries and Livestock Adviser Farida Akhter said in the interest of public welfare, the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock must work closely with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, and other relevant ministries.

Professor Dr Md Sayedur Rahman, Special Assistant, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare; Dr Farhina Ahmed, Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change; Abu Taher Muhammad Jaber, Secretary, Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock; Md Saidur Rahman, Secretary, Health Services Division; Dr Md Abu Sufian, Director General, Department of Livestock Services; Professor Dr Tahmina Shirin, Director, IEDCR; and Md Jahidul Kabir, Deputy Chief Conservator of Forests, Forest Department, also spoke.