CAB calls for energy policy implementation

The Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) has called for implementing the proposed Bangladesh Energy Transition Policy 2024, highlighting its importance for good governance, fairness, and consumer-friendly practices in the country's energy sector.

This came at a special discussion at the Professor Muzaffar Ahmed Chowdhury Auditorium of the Faculty of Social Sciences at Dhaka University on Wednesday.

Speakers at the event emphasised that looting-based expenditures, unjust profits, corruption, and foreign companies' dominance are the main barriers to the development of Bangladesh's energy sector.

They noted that if CAB's proposed policy is properly enforced, it could create a transparent, accountable, and people-centric energy system.

More than 100 students from the economics and international relations departments presented research papers that highlighted the policy's implications and challenges.

Nazifa Tajnur addressed looting-based costs and profits in energy supply, while Sabat Mostafa Prathun discussed consumer interests and the role of the Bangladesh Energy Regulatory Commission in pricing.

Chief guest Mohammad Wahid Hossain, chairman of the Bangladesh Energy and Power Research Council, observed that subsidies intended to protect people's rights often fail to reach marginalised communities, benefitting privileged groups instead.

He stressed that citizens must remain vigilant as governments respond when the public demands accountability.

CAB's Energy Adviser Professor M Shamsul Alam said the association has filed at least 15 cases with the High Court to combat injustice in the energy sector.

"The looters are powerful, but we are determined to hold them accountable. If students join this movement, it will be possible to ensure public interest in Bangladesh's energy transition," he said. Professor Tanzimuddin Khan, a member of the University Grants Commission and a teacher at Dhaka University, noted that the country's energy system remains heavily dependent on fossil fuels and foreign control.

He warned that unless this dominance is broken, energy security cannot be ensured. Besides, he highlighted the government's limited action against corruption in this sector.

Presiding over the discussion, CAB Treasurer Professor Manjur-e-Khoda Torofdar emphasised that Bangladesh is undergoing an energy transition, which must be affordable, sustainable, and consumer-focused.

Speakers agreed that looting and unfair profits are not just economic issues but moral ones as well, and structural reforms are essential to achieve transparency, justice, and the Paris Agreement's clean energy goals.

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