Case study: Dhaka

(click for a larger image)

Bangladesh with a population of more than 120 million people is the world's most crowded country, with a density of 850 persons per square kilometre.

Situated on an alluvial floodplain, where 75% of the nation live at less than 10 metres above sea level, it is subject to frequent and disastrous flooding during the monsoon season. Lack of available farmland has encouraged an exodus from the countryside to the cities, every year 5% of the rural population leave for a better life - almost 5 million people. Dhaka is the destination for many of them.

Slums close to Dhaka city centre (click for a larger image) (c) Fred Hoogervorst/Panos Pictures

Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh, has a population of 9 million people. With a distinct Asian urban morphology, squatter dwellings called bustees are found on open spaces within Dhaka and dotted around the colonial 'core', now the Central Business District (CBD). The influx of considerable numbers of people has brought numerous problems with which the city is struggling. Schemes involving the building up of local community networks have proved successful in initiating change and beginning to bring about a better lifestyle for squatter dwellers.