4 September 2025

National Dissemination Webinar on Biodiversity Data Publishing in Bangladesh

Organised by the EQMS Consulting Limited and Noakhali Science and Technology University, Bangladesh, in collaboration with the ICIMOD and GBIF

Event Call See also

About the workshop

The Bangladesh country webinar on “Biodiversity Data Mobilisation and Publishing” was held on 4 September 2025, organised by Noakhali Science and Technology University and EQMS Consulting Limited. The session aimed to sensitise key biodiversity institutions in Bangladesh about open biodiversity data and platforms such as GBIF and HKHBIF, and to build capacity for data standardisation and publishing.

The webinar opened with remarks from ICIMOD, emphasising the alignment of biodiversity data mobilisation with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (Targets 1, 14, 20, and 21) and its role in achieving global conservation goals. EQMS highlighted Bangladesh’s vulnerability to climate change and the urgent need for systematic, accessible biodiversity data for evidence-based decision-making.

Approximately 45 participants attended, representing:

  • Government agencies: Bangladesh Forest Department.
  • Academic institutions: Bangladesh Agricultural University, Chittagong University, Jahangirnagar University, Khulna University, and Noakhali Science and Technology University.
  • Other stakeholders: Biodiversity research organisations and private consulting firms.

Technical sessions included:

  • Introduction to GBIF and global biodiversity data infrastructure (Lily Shrestha, GBIF Asia Support Team).
  • Data capture, standardisation, and Darwin Core (Nourin Ahosan Habib, EQMS).
  • Data cleaning and validation using OpenRefine and GBIF tools (Humayra Mahmud, NSTU).
  • Publishing workflows using IPT and licensing requirements.
  • Overview of GRSciColl for managing scientific collections.

Key Highlights

  • Institutional Engagement: Strong participation from universities and government agencies, signalling national interest in biodiversity data sharing.
  • Data Landscape:
    • Most participants hold species occurrence data across multiple taxa, including mammals, birds, agro-biodiversity, plants, and invertebrates.
    • Data sources include research projects, natural history collections, citizen science initiatives, and long-term ecological monitoring.
  • Bangladesh has 6 registered GBIF publishers, but only 3 are active, contributing a total of 246 occurrence records. Most data about Bangladesh on GBIF comes from external sources like eBird.
  • None of the participants had previously published in GBIF, but all expressed willingness to do so and requested technical support.
  • Emphasis on the benefits of open data for global visibility, citations, collaboration opportunities, and compliance with funding requirements.

Challenges and Opportunities

Challenges:

  • Limited technical capacity for data publishing.
  • Institutional policies and non-disclosure agreements limiting data sharing.
  • Concerns about data ownership and intellectual property rights.
  • Limited awareness of GBIF infrastructure and open data benefits.

Opportunities:

  • Strong interest from academic and government institutions in publishing biodiversity data.
  • Existing datasets in digital formats (spreadsheets) make publishing feasible.
  • GBIF and HKHBIF platforms provide global visibility and recognition for data publishers.
  • Regional collaboration and technical support can overcome capacity gaps.
  • Potential for policy reforms and incentives to promote open-data culture.

Action Points

  • Technical Support: Provide hands-on guidance for institutions to publish datasets through GBIF and HKHBIF.
  • Capacity Building: Organise follow-up training on IPT workflows, data cleaning, and Darwin Core standards.
  • Policy Engagement: Work with institutions to address internal policies and NDAs that restrict data sharing.
  • Survey-based Prioritisation: Use survey responses to identify priority datasets for mobilisation.
  • Community Outreach: Encourage citizen science contributions and integrate them into GBIF workflows.
  • Explore National Node: Initiate dialogue on establishing a GBIF country node for Bangladesh to strengthen institutional engagement.

Conclusion

The Bangladesh webinar effectively showcased GBIF tools, standards, and workflows to key stakeholders, sparking significant interest in sharing biodiversity data. Despite challenges around technical capacity and institutional policies, the participants’ enthusiasm and the wide range of available datasets lay a strong groundwork for future collaboration. The upcoming activities will concentrate on providing technical assistance, building capacity, and engaging with policy to help Bangladesh contribute more actively to global biodiversity data sharing.

Contacts

Nourin Ahosan Habib, EQMS Consulting Limited, Bangladesh

Humayra Mahmud, NNoakhali Science and Technology University, Bangladesh

Lily Shrestha, Asia Regional Support Team, GBIF

Ramesh Kathariya, ICIMOD

Bandana Shakya, ICIMOD