Bangladesh's Public Spaces Struggle with Lack of Planning and Community Involvement
Galib Mahmud Pasha, a postgraduate student at the Australian National University and a public servant for the Bangladesh Government, has grown skeptical of the sincerity of public spaces and development projects in Bangladesh. His skepticism is not without cause, as the country faces numerous challenges in creating and maintaining effective and sustainable public spaces.
Pasha's inspiration for his role as a civil servant came from Akira Kurosawa's movie 'Ikiru'. In the film, the main character Kanji Watanabe, upon learning he has terminal cancer, seeks to leave a lasting legacy by helping to build a playground. Similarly, Pasha wants to create something meaningful in his role, despite the challenges he faces.
Bangladesh's development projects often lack long-term planning and community involvement, leading to ineffective and unsustainable public spaces. This is evident in the scarcity of public parks in Dhaka, with only 54 parks totaling 283.49 hectares serving a population of over 20 million. Moreover, the 'Park and Open Spaces Conservation Act 2000' has loopholes that allow exceptions to park protection, and its punishment for infringements is a modest fine. Even Dhaka's Detailed Area Plan (2022-2035), which promises ecological zones and green buffers, bends to elite interests, allowing commercial development in protected zones.
The lack of long-term planning, community involvement, and adequate punishment for infringements hinders the creation and maintenance of effective public spaces in Bangladesh. Despite these challenges, Galib Mahmud Pasha remains committed to his role as a civil servant, inspired by 'Ikiru' to create something lasting and meaningful in his country.
