LDC Group interview: Qazi K Ahmad
Channel: IIED
Date: 25/11/2015

Bangladeshi climate negotiator Qazi K Ahmad shares Bangladesh's plans and expectations from the UNFCCC 21st Conference of the Parties  (COP21) in Paris in December 2015.

Bangladesh is a delta country; that is most of the country lies in the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna Delta. Most parts of the country are only few metres above sea level  and its coastline stretches along some 700 kilometres. Its climate is temperate, wet and the rainy season is heavy.

The country has suffered a lot from impacts of climate change and rising sea levels will affect about one third of the country. Salt water has already infiltrated the groundwater up to 100 kilometers inland in some places. River bank erosion has also intensified due to the negative impacts of climate change, in recent years.

Changing weather patterns are also a problem with the country experiencing atypical prolonged rainfall, for example, and at the same time some parts of the country face drought. Climate change is driving more and more people to leave their homes every year, adding to pressure on urban areas. This ultimately adds to a shortage different services including education and healthcare.

Dhaka-based journalist Abu Bakar Siddique  talked with Ahmad, the coordinator of the Bangladesh climate change negotiating team, ahead of COP21 about Bangladesh's plans and expectations from the climate summit.

The film is part of a series of interviews with representatives from the Least Developed Country Group ahead of the UN climate talks in Paris (COP21).

More details: http://www.iied.org/LDC-voices