Germany provides €12m grants for environment, energy projects
Bangladesh and Germany have signed two memorandums of understanding (MoUs) for grants totalling €12 million to protect coastal ecosystems and improve energy efficiency.
The agreements were signed in Dhaka today (27 August) by Dr Roksana Tarannum, Additional Secretary and Wing Chief of the Economic Relations Division Europe Wing, and Mark Gombert, Country Director of GIZ Office Dhaka, according to a press release.
Germany will provide €5 million, equivalent to around Tk71.52 crore, for the Connect project, or "Better Protection of Mangroves, Swamp Forests and Marine Areas."
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
The Department of Fisheries under the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock and the Forest Department under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change will jointly implement the project.
It aims to strengthen the protection, restoration and sustainable use of marine and coastal resources by selected coastal communities in Bangladesh.
Germany will provide another €7 million, equivalent to around Tk100.12 crore, for the EE4Dev project, or "Energy Efficiency for Sustainable Development."
The Sustainable and Renewable Energy Development Authority (Sreda), under the Power Division, and the Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution, under the Ministry of Industries, will implement the project.
It seeks to improve energy efficiency and reduce grid electricity consumption in industrial facilities and residential buildings through the participation of public and private-sector stakeholders.
Germany has been a development partner of Bangladesh since 1972, and it has committed approximately €4 billion in financial and technical assistance to the country.
Currently, 19 projects involving €109.62 million in GIZ grants are being implemented in Bangladesh.
