BFF Tech Center moved from reserved forest of Cox’s Bazar

Bangladesh Football Federation -BFF- Logo

Dhaka, 1 September: At the special initiative of the Advisor for Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Syeda Rizwana Hasan, the National Sports Council has proposed constructing the football federation's technical center on 19.1 acres of abandoned land in Dhalirchara, Ramu, instead of using 20 acres of reserved forest land.

On Sunday, the National Sports Council sent a letter to the Deputy Commissioner of Cox's Bazar and the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) to take necessary steps in this regard.

Earlier, the Environment Advisor wrote to the Youth and Sports Advisor requested an alternative site for the BFF Technical Center. The Youth and Sports Adviser promptly issued instructions to the relevant authorities to take necessary actions.

The previous proposed site, a 4,710.64 acre reserved forest in Ramu, has undergone various plantation and social forestry initiatives. Constructing the BFF Technical Center at this location would destroy the habitat of Asian wild elephants, forest resources, wildlife, and biodiversity, causing severe environmental damage.

In light of this, Environment Advisor Syeda Rizwana Hasan submitted a summary to the Chief Advisor requesting the cancellation of the order to de-reserve 20 acres of reserved forest land in Khuniapalong Mouza for the construction of the BFF Technical Center funded by FIFA.

Also, the proposal to build the BFF Technical Center in the reserved forest of Ramu had sparked protests from environmentalists, wildlife conservationists and the general public. This initiative will protect the forest and wildlife in the specified area. – PID Handout No. 683