DHAKA, July 5, 2018 (BSS) – Through swift measures to develop East Dhaka,
Bangladesh has a unique opportunity to relieve the flooding, congestion and
messiness that are clogging the capital’s growth and affecting the quality of
life of city dwellers, according to a new report of World Bank (WB).
The report titled, ‘Toward Great Dhaka: A New Urban Development Paradigm
Eastward’, which was released today, lays out a strategic vision for the city
to unlock its development potential.
Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Khandaker
Mosharraf Hossain attended the report launching ceremony at Sonargaon Hotel
here while Chief Economist for the South Asia of the World Bank Martin Rama
delivered the keynote speech.
Power and Participation Research Center Chairman Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman
and WB Country Director for Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal Qimiao Fan were,
among others, present at the function.
Speaking as the chief guest, Mosharraf said the government is committed
to transform Dhaka into such a city that would be a world-class one by 2041.
“For managing development of greater Dhaka, several important initiatives
of the government, including RAJUK’s DAP (Detailed Area Plan), expansion of
Dhaka North and Dhaka South City Corporations and Dhaka Transport
Coordination Authority (DTCA), are in place,” he added.
Martin Rama said Dhaka’s residents currently face many difficulties as the
city’s infrastructure development has not kept pace with the substantial
growth of its population and traffic.
“Developing East Dhaka with a strategic approach will result in a more
prosperous and livable city. But, action must be taken now, to avoid
replicating the messy urban development of the past, and to mitigate
environmental and social risks. Fixing East Dhaka in the future will be much
more expensive and difficult,” he said.
The WB report recommends three critical interventions to develop East
Dhaka. This area is mainly rural at present, but it is located within a few
kilometres of the most valuable parts of the city.
The three interventions are: building the eastern embankment along the
Balu River to mitigate flooding; developing transport links and public
transit to ease congestion; and creating a world-class business district with
sound policies to attract firms and residents eastward.
The report analyses how these interventions could drive Dhaka toward
becoming a global city and a stronger economic powerhouse for Bangladesh. If
adopted, average income per capita in Dhaka could reach US$9,200 by 2035
compared to less than US$ 8,000 on current trends.
Dhaka’s population has increased from three million in 1980 to more than
18 million today, with 3.5 million residents currently living in slums
without basic services.
Average driving speed has slowed from 21km/h to less than 7km/h, and 3.2
million working hours are wasted everyday due to congestion. Social costs
will worsen without a different approach to urban development, as Greater
Dhaka will be home to 25 million people by 2035 on current trends.
The three interventions proposed in the report could enable Dhaka to
comfortably host an extra five million inhabitants, and to create 1.8 million
additional jobs, compared to a continuation of business as usual.
The interventions would cost about US$ 15 billion, but they could lead to
US$ 53 billion in increased economic activity per year by 2035. They would
also result in an improved quality of life for Dhaka’s inhabitants, and
alleviate many of the challenges the city currently faces.