Bangladesh Sundarban delta vision 2050 : a first step in its formulation : document 2 : a compilation of background information

The Bangladesh Sundarban delta, comprising the mangrove forest and neighbouring landscape, supports the largest array of life forms among ecosystems of a similar type. However, over the last twenty-five years, the high rate of human entrance into the mangrove, followed by the mushrooming growth of shrimp farming on the periphery, has caused severe damange to the entire ecosystem. To address this situation, a long-term vision (2050), backed by integrated management strategies, has been formulated under this initiative. This first document provides an overview of the vision; the second document goes into significantly more detail on the process for developing the vision, as well as a detailed literature review.