President urges city planners to ensure civic amenities

President Zillur Rahman Monday urged city planners to give highest importance to ensuring civic amenities to all while planning for urbanization, reports BSS. "Urbanisation should be environment friendly, hygienic, safe and balanced," he said while inaugurating the maiden conference of newly formed Bangladesh Urban Forum (BUF) at Bangabandhu International Conference Center here. LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Syed Ashraful Islam, State Minister for Housing and Public Works Advocate Abdul Mannan Khan and UNDP and UN Resident Coordinator Neal Walker spoke as the special guests. State Minister for LGRD and Cooperatives Jahangir Kabir Nanok chaired the inaugural session while Local Government Division Secretary M Shahid Khan delivered the welcome speech and Housing. Public Works Secretary Dr Khandaker Shawkat Hossain gave the vote of thanks. President Zillur Rahman said the present world is termed as 'urbanized world' as nowadays more than half of the global population is residing in urban areas. "Now it's a demand of time to make the urban life easy, environment friendly, sustainable and development oriented," the President said. Bangladesh has also witnessed quick urbanization, he said adding that one-third people of the country are now residing in urban areas. As per the experts, majority of the country's population will live in urban areas by next four decades, if the current rate of urbanization continues, he said. President Rahman said not only the urban zone, all areas of the country must be brought under balanced development to build 'Sonar Bangla', dreamt by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. "Without development of villages, the high rate of urban migration can't be checked," he said. The President said there are also negative impacts of urbanization along with its positive side. Its true urbanisation that plays a strong role in economic growth, but on the other hand fast urbanization creates economic and social discrimination, he said. "Slums are created besides the skyscrapers, it can't be accepted," Zillur Rahman said. Syed Ashraf said the government is working for a planned urbanisation under three priorities -- formulating a time befitting national urban policy, strengthening the local government and taking multifarious participatory approach. Advocate Mannan said the government has taken initiatives to ensure a planned accommodation for middle and lower income people of the capital city. "We have also taken a plan for building four satellite towns surrounding the capital city," he said. Neal Walker said Bangladesh must have succeeded in proper urbanization to achieve its core goal of becoming a middle income country by 2021. Later, President Zillur Rahman visited the urban exhibition at the venue. Urban vision, vision for future urban Bangladesh and 20 best initiatives taken by mayors of six city corporations in the country are being displayed at the exhibition. BUF's first session began based on the theme of making cities and towns work for all where policymakers and experts in different areas along with urban sector stakeholders will be discussing a wide range of urban sectors topics. There will be 20 seminars in the three days on the issues ranging from rapid urbanisation to urban poverty, nutrition and health, governance, climate change, migration and heritage. National and international experts, mayors from major different cities and towns including the representatives of civic groups are participating in the seminars. Launched on 20 October 2011, the main objective of the BUF is to facilitate participation, coordination and promotion of sustainable urban development to ensure that cities and towns work for all. BUF is a broad-based stakeholder platform for dialogue and action to address urban issues.