Back to news
25 Feb 2015 | News

Pilot project launched in Bangladesh

The Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs (MOCHTA) of Bangladesh and the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) launched a pilot project under Rural Livelihoods and Climate Change Adaptation in the Himalayas (Himalica) Initiative on 1 January 2015.

1 min Read

70% Complete

The pilot will be implemented in Bandarban District by the Bandarban Hill District Council (BHDC), and the collaboration will primarily focus on developing tourism in the Chittagong Hill Tracts with a strategic approach, building on the Himalica expertise gained from earlier activities in other regional member countries. Without strategic ecotourism planning tools, tourism development could have adverse effects and damage the very resources on which it is based.

With local tourism management delegated to district level, providing support to the BHDC in the development of tourism management would enhance sustainability. The first objective of the joint collaboration between Himalica, MOCHTA, and the BHDC is to develop a Tourism Destination Management Strategy which will consider important elements of responsible tourism that would spread economic benefits, among others. The second objective is to enhance tourism development in Ruma through increased community engagement and attention for environmental conservation.

A seminar chaired by His Excellency Bir Bahadur Ushwe Sing (MP), Honorable State Minister of MOCHTA, discussed several topical issues within the pilot framework. The MOCHTA Secretary and ICIMOD Board Member, Mr Naba Bikram Kishore Tripura, the BHDC Chairman, Mr Kyaw Shwe Hla, and ICIMOD staff contributed to the discussions. This was followed by an evening celebration in Ruma with a lively stage show of traditional songs and dances.

Speaking at the launch, the ICIMOD Director General, Dr David Molden, emphasized that the promotion of sustainable development and livelihoods is important as large population groups are dependent on land resources. He also stressed the significance of the ‘off-farm’ aspects of rural livelihoods, for example the goods and services that households could potentially supply to the tourism value chain.

ICIMOD’s Livelihoods Theme Leader and country focal person for Bangladesh, Dr Golam Rashul, added that it was important for the participants to remember that ICIMOD is not a donor agency, nor an INGO, but a regional intergovernmental learning and knowledge sharing centre created by the eight member countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan. He explained that ICIMOD works to develop an economically and environmentally sound mountain ecosystem to improve the living standards of mountain populations and to sustain vital ecosystem services for the billions of people living downstream.

MOCHTA also facilitated the setting up of the Himalica Pilot Project Management Unit within the BHDC that will manage the pilot implementation in Ruma sub-district of Bandarban.

Stay current

Stay up to date on what’s happening around the HKH with our most recent publications and find out how you can help by subscribing to our mailing list.

Sign Up

RELATED CONTENTS

Continue exploring this topic

30 Sep 2016 News
Training Offers Experiential look into Innovative Livelihoods

An arc of rainbow, light drizzle, heavy showers, lush vegetation, clean streams, waterfalls, shining mountain ranges, misty mornings, leeches, and ...

China, India, Nepal, and Pakistan Partners to Strengthen Sea Buckthorn Value Chain

Building on the successful experience of its pilot, the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), through its Support to ...

12 May 2015 News
The International Glacier symposium in Kathmandu

  The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) through its Cryosphere Initiative hosted the first International Glacier Symposium (IGS) in ...

16 Aug 2017 News
Private Sector Engagement for Climate Action in Pakistan

A joint event titled “Working Together for Sustainable Mountain Development: Private Sector Engagement for Climate Action in Pakistan” was organized ...

Kidney Beans Improve Income and Nutrition in Kailash Sacred Landscape

  ICIMOD’s Kailash Sacred Landscape Conservation and Development Initiative (KSLCDI), in partnership with the Central Himalayan Environment Association (CHEA), has identified ...

26 Nov 2018 REEECH
Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Capability for the Hindu Kush Himalaya (REEECH) Initiative launched to address energy poverty in the region

The HKH region is energy poor in spite of its vast potential for hydropower and other sources of energy such ...

Greening Barren Land: Facilitating Irrigation and Agricultural Activity in Upper Hunza, Pakistan

WWF-Pakistan plans to experiment with solar pumps and hydro ramp pumps, and install drip irrigation equipment and sprinkles to pump ...

6 Jan 2015 News
ICIMOD participates in the roundtable meetings on DRR in New Delhi, India

The meetings were attended by delegates from 26 member countries, along with 10 international organizations and representatives from ...