Mangroves as economic infrastructure: Bangladesh's Sundarbans and climate resilience

The Sundarbans mangrove forest in Bangladesh provides storm surge protection, supports fisheries, and generates tourism revenue, yet its economic value is mostly absent from national accounts. A recent study found 10-15 percent of the forest has lost recovery capacity over 25 years, threatening the coastal economy that depends on it. Bangladesh's Bureau of Statistics is developing Natural Resource Accounts to measure the economic contribution of mangroves alongside GDP. This would make the case for treating the Sundarbans as critical infrastructure rather than just a conservation area, with implications for disaster risk reduction and fiscal planning. For carbon markets and climate finance, this is a concrete example of how natural capital valuation can shift investment decisions. If the protective value of mangroves is properly accounted for, funding for restoration and conservation becomes an infrastructure spend with measurable returns, not just an environmental cost.