PARVEZ BABUL, 06 October 2026: Climate change knows no border, region, season, continent, or age. It affects all irrespective of children, women, and men across the globe, especially of the least developed countries, including Bangladesh.
Climate change creates severe risks for millions of children in Bangladesh, threatening their health, education, and safety. Climate emergencies like heat waves, floods, and cyclones disrupted schooling for roughly 33 to 35 million children.
Dangerous heat stress affects roughly 22 million young children aged 0–9, exposing them to extra heat days each year. Floods also contaminate water supplies, spreading water-borne diseases like cholera and diarrhea.
Disasters and poverty drive up dropout rates, pushing young boys toward child labor and girls toward child marriage.
National policies (such as updated climate frameworks) increasingly aim to integrate child-focused funding, healthcare, and safe water access into disaster planning; different studies highlighted the issues.
WORST IMPACTS ON CHILDREN
According to the UNICEF report, "Learning Interrupted: Global Snapshot of Climate-Related School Disruptions in 2024," it is the first of its kind and reveals that heatwaves, cyclones, floods, and other extreme weather events led to multiple rounds of school closures around the world.
In Bangladesh, nationwide heatwaves in April and May 2024 left children at risk of dehydration and heatstroke, forcing schools to close across the whole country for up to two weeks, and several districts went on to suffer subsequent school disruption due to cyclone Remal, followed by intense flooding in June.
Up to 18.4 million people were impacted by the floods countrywide, including seven million children. Children in Sylhet lost up to eight weeks of school days cumulatively, and areas in the Khulna, Chattogram, and Rangpur districts each suffered six weeks of climate-induced school closures over 12 months.
“Extreme temperatures and other climate hazards not only damage schools, but they can also affect students’ concentration, memory, and mental and physical health. Prolonged school closures increase the chance of children, especially adolescent girls, dropping out of school and being married off by families to cope with economic stress,” Rana added.
The report notes that schools and education systems are largely ill-equipped to protect students from these impacts, and climate-centered finance investments in education remain strikingly low.
CRISIS, FRAMEWORKS, AND ACTIONS
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) addresses children and climate change by recognizing their unique vulnerabilities, distinct rights, and vital role as agents of change in global climate policy.
Globally, one billion children (half the world's children) live in extremely high-risk countries facing severe climate shocks. Children suffer higher risks from extreme heat, food insecurity, malnutrition, water scarcity, and vector-borne diseases due to their developing physiology.
The UNFCCC encourages nations to mainstream children's distinct vulnerabilities and rights into updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs).
So these issues should be brought to the tables of discussion at the Conference of the Parties (COP) 31 of UNFCCC in Turkey to be held in November 2026. And make a promise to build an environment-friendly earth for the children; the UNFCCC report focused.
UNICEF is accelerating financing to improve climate resilience in the education sector, including investing in proven and promising solutions to build climate-smart learning facilities that are safe and inclusive for all children.
Rana Flowers further said, “Children in Bangladesh are at the forefront of two interconnected crises: climate change and deepening learning poverty, threatening both their survival and future. As children continue to speak up and call for urgent action on the devastating impacts of the climate crisis, decision-makers must heed their calls and place their needs at the center of climate policies and financing plans.”
The analysis shows that Bangladesh's current exposure could become even more widespread under further global warming.
Under a 1.5°C warming scenario, 23 million Bangladeshi children (87%) are projected to experience at least one additional month of heat stress each year, while 25 million (93%) could experience at least five total months of heat stress.
Dr. Ayesha Samad, Consultant, Dhaka Medical College Hospital, said, "The impact of intense heat, worsened by climate change, is becoming increasingly evident among children. Issues such as sudden vomiting, excessive fatigue, restlessness, and a loss of appetite being observed much more frequently."
BUILDING CLIMATE-RESILIENT HEALTH SYSTEMS
The World Health Organization (WHO) highlights that children in Bangladesh face severe, intensifying health risks from climate change, including extreme heatwaves, surging waterborne diseases, and year-round dengue.
Temperatures regularly exceed 40°C, leading to heat stress, dehydration, and a sharp rise in pediatric hospital admissions for heat-related illnesses. Severe flooding and cyclones damage sanitation and drinking-water infrastructure, causing surges in diarrheal illnesses that heavily impact children under five.
Dengue has shifted from a seasonal urban issue to a year-round national threat affecting young populations. Ambient air pollution worsens respiratory infections and chronic lung conditions in children.
The WHO climate change and health in Bangladesh program prioritizes building climate-resilient health systems, strengthening early warning systems, and tracking local weather-linked health data.
Joint initiatives by WHO and UNICEF focus on integrating maternal and child health protections into national climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction plans. So all the stakeholders should come forward and make sure that no child is left behind, as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targeted.
NewsNowBangla/ PB/ ZRC/ 06 October 2026