Bangladesh Unveils Five-Year Plan to Tackle Pollution

Bangladesh has unveiled a five-year environmental and climate action plan focused on planting 25 crore trees, restoring degraded forests, expanding mangrove coverage, creating green jobs, promoting climate-resilient agriculture and strengthening pollution monitoring.

The measures, outlined in the budget document for fiscal 2026-27, aim to combine nature-based climate adaptation with stronger environmental governance, digital monitoring and new financing mechanisms, including carbon trading.

The plan comes as Bangladesh faces rising temperatures, increasing salinity in coastal areas, extreme weather and persistent air pollution.

According to World Bank estimates, Bangladesh’s average maximum temperature rose by about 1.1 degrees Celsius between 1980 and 2023, while the heat index increased by 4.5 degrees Celsius. Extreme heat in 2024 was estimated to have caused about 250 million lost workdays and cost the economy up to $1.78 billion, equivalent to around 0.4 percent of GDP.

The government estimates that its environmental initiatives could generate around 3.5 lakh green jobs, both directly and indirectly, over the coming years.

Nearly 10cr saplings targeted in FY27

Under the five-year programme, afforestation will be strengthened on marginal lands along roads, highways, embankments, riverbanks and canal banks. Government forest areas will be restored, while mangrove plantations will be expanded in coastal char areas.

The government also plans to intensify afforestation in institutions and homesteads, alongside agroforestry and urban forestry programmes.

Degraded sal forests in the hills of Chattogram, the Chittagong Hill Tracts and Sylhet, as well as forests in the central region, will be brought under restoration programmes.

For FY2026-27, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has set a target of planting 4.28 crore saplings across 25,960 hectares under block plantations.

Another 3.27 crore saplings will be planted along 3,727 kilometres under strip plantations, while 1.77 crore saplings will be planted across 4,000 hectares under mangrove plantations.

A further 56 lakh saplings are targeted under homestead afforestation programmes.

Together, the four programmes amount to nearly 9.9 crore saplings in a single fiscal year, equivalent to almost 40 percent of the government’s five-year target of 25 crore trees.

The government has also finalised an action plan under the “One Child, One Tree Programme” to facilitate the planting of 1 crore trees at the homes and homesteads of students enrolled in government primary schools.

Focus on forest restoration and biodiversity

The plan goes beyond tree planting, with the government intending to restore 4,500 hectares of encroached forest land and expand protected areas by another 300 hectares.

Digital technology will be used to improve transparency in afforestation. GPS- and GIS-based information on areas planted by the Forest Department will be collected and maintained, while a Tree Monitoring App is being developed for maintenance and digital surveillance.

The biodiversity component comes as Bangladesh updates its assessment of threatened species.

The Bangladesh Forest Department and IUCN Bangladesh launched a project in January 2026 to update the country’s Faunal Red List using the latest IUCN categories and criteria. Bangladesh had earlier launched its first Plant Red List in 2024, assessing 1,000 plant species.

Under the new government plan, assessments will cover 2,200 wildlife species, including marine species, as part of the updated wildlife Red List.

Mangroves enter carbon market strategy

The government plans to bring 50 percent of coastal mangrove forests under carbon trading mechanisms, linking ecosystem conservation with climate finance.

Eleven new carbon-trading projects are being pursued under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, according to the budget document.

Bangladesh has already established institutional arrangements for an Article 6 carbon market, including a designated national authority and a readiness roadmap.

The Environment, Forest and Climate Change Ministry has also been working on a national carbon-market framework, with the government stressing transparency and accountability in carbon-market activities.

Climate-resilient agriculture gets priority

Agriculture will be another major pillar of the plan, particularly in southern Bangladesh, where salinity and water-related stresses increasingly affect farming.

The government plans to excavate canals adjacent to rivers in the southern region to reduce soil salinity and improve freshwater availability.

Financing will also be provided to develop new crop varieties through organic agriculture, safer fertiliser use and environmentally sustainable production practices.

The plan includes promoting salinity-tolerant agriculture and strengthening climate resilience in coastal areas through safe water supplies, sustainable embankments, riverbank protection and cyclone shelters.

Salinity intrusion, water stress and temperature changes pose major threats to Bangladesh’s agriculture, while climate-smart farming practices are increasingly being promoted as an adaptation measure.

In coastal Bangladesh, rising sea levels and changes in freshwater flows are also intensifying river salinity, affecting livelihoods, fisheries and food security.

Plastic waste targeted under circular economy model

On waste management, the government is moving towards what it calls a “Circular Future Model”, under which waste would increasingly be treated as a resource through energy generation, organic fertiliser production and plastic recycling.

The government aims to reduce plastic waste by 30 percent over the next five years under the 3R policy — Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.

Seventeen single-use plastic items have already been identified and banned through official notification, while broader efforts are under way to strengthen sustainable plastic management.

The government also plans to update regulations and formulate new guidelines for the environmentally sound management of electronic waste.

Air pollution remains a major challenge

Air pollution control is another major component of the environmental programme.

The government will continue monitoring air quality through 15 Continuous Air Monitoring Stations and 16 Compact Continuous Air Monitoring Stations.

Ten modern Vehicle Inspection Centres will be established under the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority, alongside plans to introduce electric bus services.

Continuous online stack-emission monitoring will also be introduced for major polluting industries, including power plants, allowing authorities to monitor emissions more directly.

The measures come amid persistent concerns over Bangladesh’s air quality.

More than 159,000 premature deaths in Bangladesh were linked to air pollution in 2019, while the economic health costs were estimated at around 8.3 percent of GDP. Annual average PM2.5 concentrations were reported at 60–100 micrograms per cubic metre nationally and around 90–100 micrograms in Dhaka, substantially above the World Health Organization guideline.

A $290 million Bangladesh Clean Air Project is supporting stronger air-quality monitoring, continuous emissions monitoring for major industrial sources and improved vehicle-emissions control. The project also includes plans for 400 zero-emission electric buses and new vehicle inspection infrastructure.

The effectiveness of the five-year programme will depend on sustained plantation and maintenance of trees, restoration of degraded and encroached forests, enforcement of pollution controls and the ability to translate climate and environmental investments into measurable improvements on the ground.