Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) Executive Director Dr Iftikharuzzaman said, “More than 50 percent of losses in projects under the government’s climate change fund involve political connections. The nature and scale of irregularities in this sector show it has emerged as a specialised area of corruption facilitated by political collusion.

Various stakeholders, including the chairman and members of the Bangladesh Climate Change Trust (BCCT) board, politically influential groups, some implementing officials, and contractors or executing agencies, have abused power and engaged in illegal transactions, taking corruption to new heights. Over Tk2,000 crore has been embezzled through irregularities and corruption in this fund.”

He made the remarks at a press conference on Tuesday at TIB’s office at Midas Centre in Dhanmondi, Dhaka. TIB’s Advisor and Executive Management Professor Dr Sumaiya Khair and Research and Policy Department Director Muhammad Badiuzzaman attended the event.

Senior Research Fellow Md Mahfuzul Haq and Research Associate Md Sahidul Islam presented a research report titled “Challenges and solutions for governance in climate finance in Bangladesh”, moderated by Outreach and Communication Department Director Mohammad Touhidul Islam.

Dr Iftikharuzzaman added, “Despite opportunities and obligations to implement targeted activities considering risks in climate finance, corruption has prevented these objectives from being realised. Bangladesh ranks among the most climate-vulnerable countries.

Climate-vulnerable countries, including Bangladesh, were supposed to receive financial support from developed nations responsible for the majority of environmental pollution, with a commitment to provide $100 billion annually in additional and new grants over regular foreign aid.

However, these polluting nations have failed to meet their commitments. Disbursements from international funds remain negligible. Consequently, it is crucial to ensure the climate fund is used transparently, as part of the national budget, yet governance standards in the government-funded sector have been inadequate.”

He said, “From 2003 to 2024, the projected allocation for climate change-related projects in Bangladesh was $10 to $12 billion. In reality, national and international allocations reached only $1.2 billion. This meagre amount was not spent transparently; rather, it was misappropriated.

The majority of government funding—over Tk2,000 crore—was embezzled or wasted through irregularities. While this may seem lower compared to overall looting over the past 16 years, it actually represents 54 per cent of the government fund in this sector.”

TIB’s research report notes that from 2010 to 2024, the Bangladesh Climate Change Trust Fund (BCCT) approved $458.5 million for projects. Estimated corruption during this period amounts to $248.4 million, equivalent to Tk2,110.6 crore.

In other words, 54 per cent of allocated project funds were lost to corruption. Project approvals clearly reflected political considerations, collusion, and nepotism, while BCCT officials, as fund managers, failed to take effective measures to prevent irregularities.

The report adds that Bangladesh requires $12.5 billion annually to tackle climate impacts. However, from 2015 to 2023, national and international funds allocated only $86.2 million, just 0.7 per cent of the required amount. Of 585 completed projects by 2024, only 90 (15.4 per cent) underwent brief evaluations, and most projects lacked proper assessment. The impact of 495 completed projects (84.6 per cent) remained unverified.