Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Monday said his government is working to ensure safe, affordable and sustainable housing for all citizens while pursuing planned and decentralised urban development across the country.

“Livable, affordable, environmentally friendly and safe housing with basic services for all, or universal housing, is a fundamental constitutional right of citizens. The government is firmly committed to ensuring and safeguarding this right,” he said.

The prime minister made the remarks while addressing a discussion marking World Habitat Day 2026 at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre.

The Ministry of Housing and Public Works organised the programme under the theme “Universal Housing, Sustainable Urbanisation.”

The prime minister said ensuring planned urbanisation and housing facilities for low- and lower-middle-income people is one of the government’s electoral commitments.

He said the government is taking steps to prepare master plans for city corporations and districts across the country to ensure planned urban development.

“Ensuring planned urbanisation and housing facilities for people with limited incomes is one of our government’s major electoral commitments,” Tarique said.

He said housing should not be viewed merely as a physical structure, but as a comprehensive living environment involving safe drinking water, uninterrupted electricity, improved sanitation, public transport, better road management, education and healthcare facilities, adequate employment opportunities and a safe environment for a dignified life.

“It is now a necessity not only to provide housing for citizens but also to ensure that such housing is safe and sustainable,” Tarique added.

The Prime Minister acknowledged that ensuring such housing for all citizens is more difficult in a densely populated country like Bangladesh than in developed countries.

“Yet, if we want to survive with dignity in a competitive world, we must move forward by facing every challenge and keeping pace with the rest of the world,” he said.

Pressure on cities

The prime minister said population pressure is continuously increasing in cities, towns and urban centres across Bangladesh, with Dhaka now being “overpopulated” by any standard.

He said other major cities are also facing similar pressures, making the concept of universal housing and sustainable urbanisation particularly important for Bangladesh.

Tarique Rahman, however, noted that implementing these goals is not as easy as articulating them, particularly given the country’s existing realities.

The government, Tarique said, is nevertheless taking steps to address the challenges and implement its plans.

Master plans, secondary townships

The prime minister said the government is working to reduce population pressure on urban areas by improving fast, affordable and safe connectivity between Dhaka and other cities and the rest of the country.

At the same time, the government is working to improve civic amenities in rural areas so that better facilities outside cities can help reduce pressure on urban centres, he said.

Tarique said development in Bangladesh was concentrated around Dhaka and a few major cities in the past.

The government now wants to bring every region into the mainstream of national development and promote decentralised and balanced urban and regional development, he said.

“Our goal is not to concentrate urban development in one particular place. Rather, we want balanced and decentralised urban and regional development so that development spreads across all areas,” Tarique said.

He said the Ministry of Housing and Public Works is working on a nationwide planning initiative as well as a plan to develop secondary townships around Dhaka.

The prime minister said new development authorities have already been established in Sylhet, Mymensingh, Barishal, Cumilla, Rangpur and Narayanganj, which would help facilitate planned urbanisation in those areas.

He expressed the hope that these initiatives would contribute to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 11, which calls for inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable cities and communities.

“It will take time, but we will be able to achieve it gradually, InshaAllah,” he said.

Environment at centre of housing plans

Tarique said environmental protection was a major consideration in the government’s plans for liveable housing and urban development.

He said the government had set a target of planting 250 million trees across the country over the next five years.

The Prime Minister also stressed the need for effective waste management in Dhaka and other city corporations and districts, saying the government was working to properly manage the growing volume of waste generated by people’s daily activities.

He said population pressure and rapid urbanisation had made proper waste management increasingly important for protecting the environment.

Public-private cooperation needed

Tarique said tackling the housing crisis in urban areas would be difficult for the government alone and called for coordinated participation by major entrepreneurs and stakeholders in the housing sector.

He said private-sector stakeholders could play an important role in addressing the housing challenges and ensuring affordable, environmentally friendly and safe housing with basic services.

The government, Tarique said, is also working on block-based housing schemes, area-based parks and playgrounds, and designated industrial zones as part of its broader urban planning efforts.

The prime minister expressed confidence that the government would gradually implement its plans and make safe housing for all a reality for the citizens of Bangladesh.

He wished success for the World Habitat Day 2026 programmes and formally declared their inauguration.

Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Abdul Awal Mintoo, Housing and Public Works Minister Zakaria Taher Sumon, State Minister for Housing and Public Works Ahmad Sohel Manzur, ministry secretary Md Obaidur Rahman and UN Resident Coordinator in Bangladesh Ms Carol Flore-Smerecznia,  among others, addressed the programme.

Before joining the programme, the prime minister planted a Swarna Champa on the premises of the conference centre.

The Prime Minister also inaugurated a three-day housing fair at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre  after attending the discussion programme.

Various organisations from the housing and construction sectors, along with different departments and agencies under the Ministry of Housing and Public Works, are participating in the fair.

The prime minister visited different stalls at the fair and later signed the visitors’ book.

World Habitat Day is also being observed across all divisions and districts of the country through various programmes, including publication of a souvenir, special discussions on television and radio, and displaying banners, posters and festoons at important locations.

Since 1986, World Habitat Day has been observed in Bangladesh and countries around the world.

At the programme, a special documentary on World Habitat Day 2026 was screened and the prime minister unveiled a souvenir marking the day.