Hunting and wildlife trade must be controlled to protect biodiversity, Environment, Forests and Climate Change Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan said today (November 9).

“Small initiatives for environmental protection can lead to significant changes,” Rizwana said while speaking as the chief guest at the national closing ceremony of ‘Wildlife Olympiad’ held at Viqarunnisa Noon School and College in Dhaka.

On the programme, she called for the conservation of all wildlife, including tigers and elephants, and said deforestation should be stopped to protect existing forests.

As a former student of the school and college, she shared various memories and mentioned that an initiative would be taken to designate an old tree in the institution as a memorial tree.

Rizwana further highlighted the message of conservation being spread through the Wildlife Olympiad, emphasizing the vision of a green and beautiful Bangladesh for future generations.

She mentioned various measures taken to protect Bangladesh’s only coral island of Saint Martin and urged people to avoid using plastic bags, unnecessary honking and to conserve electricity by switching off fans and lights during the day.

Environment Secretary Dr Farhina Ahmed, Chief Conservator of Forests Md Amir Hosain Chowdhury and Viqarunnisa Noon School and College Principal Majeda Begum were also present.

The event showcased the Olympiad theme song and a musical drama, followed by a pledge against poaching.

All participating students received T-shirts, certificates and gift items while the winners in each category were awarded cash prizes of Tk 50,000, Tk 30,000 and Tk 20,000 for the first, second and third places.

This year’s Olympiad drew 107,000 students across the country, registered both online and offline. The district rounds took place across the country, where the Forest Department distributed prizes and certificates to the district-level winners.

Ahead of the event, Counselor Rizwana laid the foundation stone of a six-storey academic building and inaugurated an eight-storey ICT building at Viqarunnisa Noon School and College.