Publish white paper on ‘three zero’ performance

Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) has called for the publication of a white paper at the end of the interim government’s tenure to inform the public about the extent to which the government, formed under the leadership of Prof Muhammad Yunus, has fulfilled its responsibilities in line with the internationally promoted concept of “three zero”.

“Alongside the international advocacy surrounding the ‘three zero’ concept, I believe people of the country will want to know the extent to which responsibilities have been fulfilled nationally in relation to these three issues,” said Iftekharuzzaman, executive director of Transparency International Bangladesh, while speaking at a human chain on Dhaka’s Manik Mia Avenue yesterday.

TIB organised the programme marking the UN-declared International Clean Energy Day 2026.

Yunus promotes the global vision of zero poverty, zero unemployment and zero carbon emissions. However, Iftekharuzzaman said after assuming office, the interim government has acted in ways that contradict his advocacy on these three fronts.

“As a UN member state, Bangladesh’s interim government has failed to observe Clean Energy Day,” he said.

He questioned whether the government has taken any initiative that a future elected government could carry forward.

Iftekharuzzaman criticised the interim government’s draft Energy and Power Sector Master Plan (EPSMP 2025), saying the plan remains dependent on fossil fuels.

He alleged that the absence of a participatory approach is one of the defining features of the interim government’s activities.

At the human chain, Ashna Islam, co-coordinator of TIB’s Clean Energy Project, presented a concept paper on renewable energy and good governance for sustainable development.

In the paper, she placed several recommendations on behalf of TIB, including political parties’ commitment to gradually phase out fossil fuel use and increase the share of renewable energy in the energy mix. She also stressed the need to take opinions of civil society, neutral experts and relevant stakeholders before finalising the draft Energy and Power Sector Master Plan, and to adopt energy sector policies aimed at achieving a net-zero target.