"Bangladesh is trapped between the Himalayas in the north and the encroaching Bay of Bengal to the south. Bangladesh is most vulnerable to natural disasters due to the frequency of extreme climate events and its high population density. Floods are frequent and cause the greatest economic and human losses to the country. The flooding problems are exacerbated by sediment transported by three major rivers- the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna.

Climate change poses significant risks for Bangladesh. The impacts of higher temperatures, more variable precipitation, more extreme weather events, and sea level rise are already felt in Bangladesh and will continue to intensify. The impacts result not only from gradual changes in temperature and sea level but also, in particular, from increased climate variability and extreme events, including more intense floods, droughts, and storms.

These changes are already having major impacts on the economic performance of Bangladesh and on the lives and livelihoods of millions of poor people.

The climate change will affect many sectors, including water resources, agriculture and food security, ecosystems and biodiversity, human health and coastal zones.

- Many environmental and developmental problems will be exacerbated by climate change.
- Predicted rainfall increases, particularly during the summer monsoon, could increase flood-prone areas in Bangladesh.
- Crop yields are predicted to fall by up to 30 per cent, creating a very high risk of hunger.
- Predicted temperature increase will cause the melting of glaciers in the Himalayas.

In the short term, the global warming increases risk of flooding, erosion, mudslides during the wet season. In the longer term, global warming could lead to disappearance of many glaciers that feed many rivers in South Asia."

To address these issues a high level conference on effects of climate change in Bangladesh will take place in London on 10th September 2008.