Why Government of Bangladesh should give priority to sanitation specially in the urban area!
Rapid but Unplanned Urbanization is one of the reasons for why Government of Bangladesh should give priority to sanitation especially in the urban area. Urban population of Bangladesh is one of the largest in the world. Bangladesh’s urban residents are concentrated in its City Corporations and Pourashavas (agglomerations of more than 5,000 with urban features such as non-farming activities). Dhaka the capital (comprising two City Corporations) is at least twice as large in population as Chittagong, the country’s second largest city. Slums are unplanned clusters of housing in an “unhealthy” environment, and are situated within residential areas of the city itself and along its fringes. There have been attempts of government and many non-government organizations to resettle slum residents outside city centres but most have failed due to poor transport infrastructure.
Onsite sanitation is the norm in most urban areas while the transport and treatment services for sewage and faecal sludge are under-developed. Open defecation has reportedly been eradicated in urban areas. Most urban residents rely on onsite sanitation facilities: Dhaka is the only city in Bangladesh with a sewer system, to which only 20% of its population is connected. Increasing population density and increasing levels of water use lead to septic tanks and pit latrines filling up rapidly. Residents (including in high-income areas) generally discharge large volumes of untreated effluent directly into the drainage or the nearby environment.
In 2014, the government of Bangladesh was acknowledged access to water and sanitation services as a human right in National Strategy for Water Supply and Sanitation. The key barriers towards poor urban sanitation are Rapid urbanization, low decentralization, lack of demand for and supply of fecal sludge Management (FSM) services and lack of investment. Funding in sanitation sector in Bangladesh now focused on rural sanitation and urban sector sewerage services. Internally-generated CC revenue tends to be low and central government allocations are insufficient. The Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives – MLGRD&C approves City Corporations budget plan and made available after central Government approval but if sanitation is not included in a City Corporation’s plan then budget will not be available.
Urban governance should look after weak environmental and housing regulations which allow landlords to discard appropriate containment solutions and households to discharge faecal sludge into drains. Ineffective decentralization and the duplication of roles and responsibilities create further disincentives for engaging in sanitation services. Despite challenges, the sector has an opportunity to bring about change. The urban sanitation sector in Bangladesh has moved beyond the development of containment services to supporting the development of the full supply chain. Finally, the government’s ambition to achieve upper middle-income and health status increases the potential for rapid progress in the sanitation sector. The Government must coordinate efforts to identify a range of suitable technologies by giving highest priority in sanitation in urban area to achieve Sustainable Goals.
