Urban Development and Public Health in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Abstract

The history of urban development and the advance of planning as a tool for guiding urban growth have always been closely linked with public health issues. Recognising the links between a city’s urban layout and its public health status has in the past often been the beginning of the establishment of planning principles, whether in Mesopotamia to improve air circulation, in medieval times to protect cities from fire hazards, or in the industrial age to fight epidemics such as cholera by adhering to sanitary guidelines. The interdependencies between socio-spatial development and the public health status of urban settlements are especially important nowadays in the fast growing cities of developing and transforming regions, where city authorities often have problems accommodating rapidly growing populations and an expanding economy in such a way that public health risks are minimised. In light of the severity of public health risks, especially in growing cities, the WHO (http://www.who.int) in 2010 launched the campaign ‘Urban planning as a critical link to building a healthy 21st century’. The campaign emphasises promotion of urban planning, improvement of urban living conditions, and participatory governance so as to enhance the resilience of cities to disaster and provide a better urban living environment (ibid.). The megacity Dhaka, the subject of our research, is a striking case showing the deterioration of the urban environment under uncontrolled and rapid urbanisation with detrimental effects on public health.