UN Women hosts meeting with stakeholders to build climate resilient society

UN Women Bangladesh hosted a national coordination meeting with key stakeholders on "EmPower II- Women for Climate Resilient Societies" project at the Department of Environment in Dhaka on 17 May. 

With the support from the government of Sweden, EmPower Phase II (2023–2027) aims to speed up implementation while developing on the achievements and lessons learned from Phase I, reads a press release.

Its overall goal is to make people in the Asia-Pacific region less susceptible to the effects of climate change, to experience greater gender equality, and to fully enjoy all of their rights, including equal access to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment.

The key achievements from EmPower-I includes updating the climate change Gender Action Plan (ccGAP) 2022 in partnership with Bangladesh Climate Change Trust (BCCT) under the leadership of the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change (MoEFCC). 

The program also conducted a pilot survey report on Sex, Age, and Disability Disaggregated Data (SADDD) on Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) in partnership with the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).

UN Women aims to focus on enhancing regional and national actors' abilities to successfully implement climate and disaster risk reduction (DRR) policies that are gender-responsive, securing funding and fostering climate resilience for women in all of their diversity and other marginalized groups, and ensuring their effective representation in decision-making processes during phase II of the project. 

Present as the guest of honour Alexandra Berg Von Linde, ambassador of Sweden, started her speech by thanking all stakeholders in this project. 

She acknowledged that Bangladesh's contribution is a breakthrough step for climate change, gender adaptation, women's empowerment, gender equality, eliminating gender discrimination, and empowering women economically, socially, and politically.

She also stated that the Swedish government has always supported the initiatives of the Bangladeshi government and UN Women and will do so in the future.

Dr Farhina Ahmed, secretary, the Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Climate Change who chaired the event thanked everyone who involved in the project EmPower II. 

She expressed gratitude for the proper implementation of the activities undertaken by this project and said that this effort will be essential to the growth of women's education and health sectors, the rapid advancement of backward communities, and eliminating the family, social, and economic problems of women affected by disasters, thus requiring strategic long-term planning.

She also highlighted the various activities of the ministry for the empowerment and development of women and thanked the Swedish government for implementing this project and supporting such activities, especially for the women of the coastal areas.

Gitanjali Singh, country representative, UN Women Bangladesh, welcomed everyone and emphasized the importance of EmPower Phase II. 

She believed that strengthening the equal participation of men and women, will ensure gender responsive activity and health issues as well supporting financing activity to implement the projects properly.

Dr Abdul Hamid, director general, Department of Environment, and Sanjay Kumar Bhowmik, additional secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Climate Change, were present as special guests. 

Gitanjali Singh, country representative, UN Women Bangladesh, gave the welcome address, and a vote of thanks was given by Dilruba Haider, program specialist, UN Women Bangladesh.

The UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

UN Women in Bangladesh supports the government to implement their commitments to international normative standards on gender equality and women's human rights. 

UN Women works with a range of stakeholders in Bangladesh including the government, civil society and women's organizations, youth, UN agencies and donors, to promote gender equality and women's empowerment.