Govt adopts coordinated plan to meet 25cr tree plantation target

The government has formed a high-level coordination cell to implement the National Green Mission, under which it aims to plant 25 crore trees over the next five years to fulfil an election pledge.
The cell comprises representatives from the Local Government Division, the Ministry of Land, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Secondary and Higher Education Division, the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief, and the Forest Department. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change will provide secretarial support to the body.
The coordination cell has been tasked with collecting saplings, selecting suitable tree species and plantation sites, coordinating plantation activities among ministries and agencies, monitoring implementation, providing technical guidance, launching plantation campaigns and awareness programmes, and ensuring funding for the initiative.
As part of the concerted effort, the Technical and Madrasa Education Division (TMED) has set a target of planting around 43 lakh trees annually, or about 2.15 crore trees over five years. The trees will be planted by teachers, staff and students at educational institutions, along roadsides, at homes and at other suitable locations.
On 17 June, TMED held a meeting with its subordinate bodies, including the Directorate of Technical Education (DTE), to discuss measures for implementing the nationwide tree plantation programme.
Following the meeting, the DTE issued a directive on 1 July instructing all affiliated institutions to implement the decisions.
The institutions have been asked to collect saplings from the Forest Department and the Department of Agricultural Extension. If saplings are unavailable from those agencies, they have been instructed to procure them using their own funds, according to the directive.
Meanwhile, under the Learning Acceleration in Secondary Education (LASE) Project, the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (DSHE) has provided a climate grant of Tk5,000 to each government and MPO-listed secondary educational institution.
The grant will be used to plant one fruit tree, one timber tree and one medicinal tree on each campus. Schools have also been instructed to use part of the grant to prepare banners or festoons and organise seminars or rallies to promote the tree plantation campaign.
App being developed to monitor tree plantation
The government is developing a Tree Monitoring App to monitor the survival and growth of saplings planted under its nationwide afforestation programme and strengthen accountability.
The initiative has been outlined in the National Budget Speech for the 2026-27 fiscal year and the Bangladesh Climate Budget Report 2026-27 as part of the broader National Green Mission to promote environmental conservation and climate resilience.
The Technical and Madrasa Education Division (TMED) has instructed the authorities concerned to collect and submit data on trees planted at institutions under the Directorate of Technical Education, the Directorate of Madrasa Education, the Bangladesh Technical Education Board and the Bangladesh Madrasa Education Board.
The TMED meeting decided that the information will be uploaded to the app once it comes into operation.