Wild Animal Conservation Efforts of the International Institutions in the World’s Largest Mangrove Forest in Bangladesh

Situating in the lap of the Bay of Bengal, the world’s largest mangrove forest, the Sundarbans, plays a significant role in the livelihood of more than three million people and provides shelter to an undetermined number of species. Unfortunately, this United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) declared world heritage site faces various threats to wildlife and biodiversity due to human interventions in the forest and animal habitats. The present study finds that despite having 150 forest policies to conserve the forest, the forest size is gradually shrinking across the country, particularly in the Sundarbans. However, National Forestry Policy 1979 (amended 2016) aims to protect forests and forest resources, and Wildlife (Conservation and Security) Act, 2012 (hereafter the Wildlife Act 2012) protects against wildlife crimes. Although National Forestry Policy 2016 endeavours to engage the local communities in the conservation process, no significant improvement was seen in the life of local communities and forest management. This paper assesses the role of international institutions that often support and cooperate with other countries for sustainable forest management and biodiversity conservation, like the Sundarbans of Bangladesh.