Civil society leaders calls for urgent food, climate reforms

Civil society representatives on Wednesday stressed the urgent need to reform Bangladesh’s policy and legal frameworks to ensure food sovereignty and address climate change risks.

They said agriculture must be prioritised as an integral part of the right to food, with reforms in the national agricultural policy. Instead of focusing on commercial rights, food rights should take precedence to establish a sustainable farming system.

The made the call at a “Meet the Press” programme held at the AKM Mushtaque Ali Auditorium in the capital, organised by the South Asian Alliance for Poverty Eradication (SAAPE) and INCIDIN Bangladesh. 

INCIDIN’s Executive Director, A K M Masud Ali presented the keynote paper, while Bangladesh Krishak Federation leaders SM Badrul Alam and Zayed Iqbal Khan, Khetmajur Union Vice-President Khan Md Rustam Ali, INCIDIN officials Mushfiqur Rahman and Md Rafiqul Alam, indigenous leader Kalyani Chakma, and coastal activist Nikhil Chandra Bhadra also spoke at the function.

The keynote paper emphasised ensuring food security at local and regional levels, guaranteeing land, water, seed, and credit rights for small and marginal farmers, preventing the introduction of genetically modified crops, and protecting water resources as public assets. 

It also called for land reform, free seed access, and active participation of smallholders in climate adaptation planning.

Recommendations were based on consultations with eight farmers’ and workers’ organisations, three indigenous groups, and 21 civil society bodies. Speakers urged the government to take immediate and effective action to reform, harmonise, and implement policy and legal frameworks to safeguard food sovereignty and tackle climate challenges.