Unplanned urbanisation to trigger grave disaster, say policy makers

FE Report | Published: June 23, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

Policymakers and experts at a seminar Sunday warned of a grave disaster if immediate policy intervention is not taken to stop unplanned urbanisation.
"Unplanned urbanisation will cause grave disaster if the government does not go tough on this issue and people do not come to senses," Minister for Water Resources Anisul Islam Mahmud said while moderating at a seminar.
He was moderating at the sixth session on 'Sustainable Development and Institutions' at the seminar. The Bangladesh Economists' Forum (BEF) organised the two-day seminar on 'Vision 2030: A Framework for Economic Policy Making and Strategy Formulation in Pluralistic Democracy'.
Executive Chairman of Power and Participation Research Center (PPRC) Hossain Zillur Rahman and Palli Kara-Sahyak Foundation Chairman Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad presented two papers at the session on 'Urbanisation in Bangladesh: Challenges and Priorities' and 'Sustainable Development under Climate Change and Environmental Stress from Accelerated Growth' respectively.
Brac University Vice Chancellor Ainun Nishat and Professor of Urban and Regional Planning at Bangladesh University of Engineering Technology (BUET) Sarwar Jahan spoke as designated discussants.
Anisul Islam Mahmud said people are recklessly encroaching canals, rivers and building infrastructures which certainly would take us to a disaster.
He said growth itself is looking for urbanization. If growth takes place, urbanisation would happen automatically.
He suggested special programmes for the urban poor, specially for the slum-dwellers. People living in the slums are in much more miserable condition than those of the rural poor," he said.
He said water sector is the worst victim of climate change across the world. He suggested sub-regional cooperation to combat climate change impacts.
Dr Ainun Nishat said Dhaka was built to hold 60 mm rainfall but it has been receiving more than 300 mm rain in the rainy season which pushes the city to a non-livable condition.
He said the climate change experts have identified Dhaka as the worst city in the world.
"We need to pay urgent attention to the infrastructure of major cities including Dhaka and Chittagong," he said.
He said money is not a problem for Bangladesh; the problem is lack of proper planning and policy making.
He said, "If we can't address climate change impacts, its ultimate effects will be on bio-diversity, food security and sustainable development."
Car is the most detrimental element on traffic, Professor Sarwar Jahan said adding that Bangladesh is not creating facilities for the people. It facilitates cars or riches on the roads, he said.
"It is a serious governance problem that our policymakers only take care of the riches," he said.
Hossain Zillur Rahman, in his paper, said the government is putting less attention for the urban poor. Most of them are deprived of health care, education and basic services.
"Our most development programmes aim for the middle class and riches in urban areas; slum-dwellers and urban poor have always been left out," he said.
He pleaded for three-tier development programmes on urbanisation perspectives. These are metropolitan, two-tier cities and rural towns.
He said urbanisation is the key agenda which should be properly addressed for fulfillment of aspirations of middle-income country.
Qazi Kholiquzaman said details of action prgrammes and priorities of climate change issues are not yet worked out in many respects, which should be accomplished on a priority basis.
He also said more research on the less clear aspects remains important.
He said being a least-developed country, Bangladesh is not a big player in climate change negotiations internationally. But it has been and will be putting pressure on the rich countries to get its due share.