July 5, 2012

Bangladesh Environment Minister HE Dr. Hasan Mahmud:

“There has been a degradation of Agenda 21 here in Rio. With only a few paragraphs, climate change is not adequately addressed. Not thousands, but millions of people are already displaced due to a loss of livelihood and now with inadequate Rio texts our GDP losses will only grow and our condition will be further aggravated. Rio should do the opposite. My call here today to the global community, as the Chair of the Forum, is simple: amplify climate change in the Rio+20 outcome texts.”

Ministers from Bangladesh, Costa Rica and Nepal appealed to improve on inadequate attention to climate change in the deliberation and outcomes of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development, Rio+20. The Forum of more than 20 countries pledged to show leadership on sustainable development and to follow low-carbon pathways, and called other governments to join and support the movement.