BD, Germany sign 2 technical coop agreements

Bangladesh and Germany have signed two technical cooperation agreements on Tuesday against two projects in the fields of the Sundarban Mangroves and in tanneries.

The main project objectives are to improve the coordination mechanisms for the protection and sustainable use of the natural resources of the Swatch of No Ground (SoNG) Marine Protected Area and to strengthen the capacity of BFD in the field of marine protected area management.

"Under the project, the institutional framework will be reinforced to foster enhanced compliance with occupational health and safety standards in tanneries in selected regions of Bangladesh," a media release said on Tuesday.
Sharifa Khan, secretary of Economic Relations Division (ERD), and Andreas Kuck, country director of GIZ on behalf of the Federal Republic of Germany in Bangladesh, signed the agreements on behalf of their respective sides.

The total available fund for the "Integrated management of the Sundarban Mangroves and the Marine Protected Area Swatch of No Ground (SoNG) Bangladesh" is up to €4 million for a period of three years ending on July 31, 2025.

The agreements are on the projects titled: "Integrated management of the Sundarban Mangroves and the Marine Protected Area 'Swatch of No Ground (SoNG)' Bangladesh" and "Good Working Conditions in Tanneries (GOTAN)".

The Department of Fisheries (DoF) under the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change will implement the project, the release said.

The government has designated the SoNG as the country's first Marine Protected Area with a surface area of 173,000 hectare.

The funding proposal is mainly based on a request for support in the wider Blue Sundarban area received from the government in March 2017.

The total available fund for the "Good Working Conditions in Tanneries (GOTAN)" project is up to €4 million to be completed by April 30, 2025.

The Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) under the Ministry of Labour and Employment (MoLE) will implement the project.