UNDP and Bangladesh Fight Environmental Degradation to Reduce Poverty

UNDP21 June 2010: The UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the Government of Bangladesh are supporting the island of St. Martin’s to develop strategies that offset or avoid biodiversity loss while promoting poverty reduction.

Land pressures caused by a growing population and natural disasters, along with the threats posed by climate change, have amplified the risks of biodiversity reduction and ecosystem changes on the island, a biodiversity hotspot located in the southern part of Bangladesh. By promoting strategies such as livelihood diversification, the Government of Bangladesh and UNDP are supporting communities' efforts to opt for farming and agricultural practices that better utilize natural resources for long-term preservation and environmentally-sustainable strategies. The next step of the initiative is to identify interventions and programmes that have been successful in St. Martin and that can be scaled up on a national level. UNDP is expected to support the Government in creating a long-term plan for national implementation. [UNDP Press Release]