In the fight against climate change, a carbon tax is absolutely essential to ensure that Bangladesh starts moving away from fossil fuels and instead focuses on greener sources of energy.
While Bangladesh’s carbon footprint in the context of the world is negligible -- developed nations continue to stand as the biggest contributors to climate change -- it is still imperative that we, as one of the nations on the frontline of the climate crisis, do everything in our power to change our ways.
As our people continue to suffer due to the detrimental effects of climate change -- from losing their livelihoods to forced migration -- it is high time that the administration finally paved the way for polices that fight back.
As such, a carbon tax would go a long way towards disincentivizing the use of fossil fuels and incentivize research and investment in renewable energy.
But our approach to the implementation of carbon tax must be a holistic one, and simply slapping on a tax without analyzing its effectiveness, and without paying attention to the consequences on the citizens, might not be the best approach.
The issue with fossil fuels is that its usage has become inherent to every part of our lives and the government must work towards encouraging behaviour that either reduces the need for using fossil fuels or eliminates it completely.
For example, creating a safe and efficient public transport system which encourages more and more people to give up on using personally owned vehicles would have tremendous impact on the extent to which fossil fuels are used, and move us towards a much more sustainable model for development.
With the impending climate crisis at our doorstep, we require radical changes in the way we function as a nation. And the time to start is now.