URBAN GOVERNANCE IN BANGLADESH : EXPLORING THE CONTEMPORARY ISSUES

This article explores the contemporary issues and challenges of urban governance in Bangladesh, a country experiencing rapid and often-unplanned urbanization. It provides a critical assessment of the institutional framework for managing the country's cities and towns, with a particular focus on the major metropolitan areas like Dhaka. The study identifies a range of severe governance challenges, including the fragmentation of authority among multiple, uncoordinated municipal and government agencies, a chronic lack of financial resources for urban local bodies, and the absence of meaningful citizen participation in urban planning and management. The research analyzes the consequences of these governance failures, such as the poor quality of basic urban services (water, sanitation, transport), the proliferation of slums, and the severe environmental degradation. The paper argues that a fundamental reform of the urban governance system is urgently needed. The analysis concludes by calling for greater decentralization of power to elected city governments and the creation of more inclusive and participatory models of urban management.

Bangladesh is one of the fastest urbanizing countries in the world, a process that is creating immense challenges for urban governance. This paper provides an in-depth exploration of the contemporary issues that define this challenge. The study begins by outlining the institutional landscape of urban governance in Bangladesh, highlighting its fragmented and dysfunctional nature. It uses the case of Dhaka to illustrate how the responsibility for managing the city is divided among a bewildering array of over fifty different government agencies, with the elected city corporation having very limited real power. This institutional fragmentation, the paper argues, is a primary cause of the city's chronic problems. The core of the article is a detailed analysis of the key governance failures. It examines the severe financial weakness of most municipalities, which are almost entirely dependent on central government grants and lack the autonomy to raise their own revenues. It also provides a critical assessment of the almost complete absence of participatory urban planning, where decisions are made by a centralized bureaucracy with little or no input from the citizens who are affected. The paper links these governance failures directly to the poor quality of urban life, from the crippling traffic congestion to the inadequate provision of basic services and the uncontrolled environmental pollution. The findings lead to a clear conclusion: a radical overhaul of the urban governance system is a national imperative. The paper advocates for a new model based on empowered and accountable city governments and the active participation of urban communities in the planning and management of their own cities.