Rapid Mass Urbanization

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Rapid Mass Urbanisation and Its Social Consequences in Bangladesh: The Case of the

Megacity of Dhaka1

Shahadat Hossain

PhD Candidate, School of Sociology and Anthropology, The University of New

South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia

&

Assistant Professor (leave), Department of Sociology, The University of Dhaka,

Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh

Abstract: The paper attempts to explain the phenomenon of rapid mass urbanisation and its

social consequences, the formation of huge urban slums and new forms of urban poverty. It

explores the poverty and vulnerability focusing on the pattern of employment, income,

consumption and asset vulnerability. The study is mainly based on primary data collected from

slums in Dhaka City. Five hundred poor households were surveyed using a structured

questionnaire to investigate poverty and vulnerability. It reveals that slum communities of Dhaka

City experience the highest level of poverty and vulnerability in their every day life. This paper

argues that the experience of poverty in the megacity of Dhaka for these households follows the

pattern of urbanisation without development, the very opposite to their expectations and

aspirations.

Introduction

Dhaka City has emerged as a fast growing megacity in recent times. It began with a manageable

population of 2.2 million in 1975 which reached 12.3 million in 2000. The growth rate of the

population during 1974-2000 was 6.9% (UN, 1998). There is no city in the world, which has

experienced such a high growth rate in population during this period. The United Nations (1999)

describes the rapid population growth of this city as exceptional. The growth rate of Dhaka

Citys population will also continue to remain high. During 2000-2015 it is expected to grow at a

1This paper was presented to the 16thBiennial Conference of the Asian Studies Association of Australia in

Wollongong 26 June 29 June 2006. It has been peer-reviewed and appears on the Conference

Proceedings website by permission of the author who retains copyright. The paper may be downloaded for

fair use under the Copyright Act (1954), its later amendments and other relevant legislation.


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3.6% annual growth rate and reach a total population of 21.1 million in 2015. This will put it in

4thposition on the list of the worlds megacities (UN, 1999). As this rapid growth of Dhaka City

is not commensurate with its industrial development, about one-third of the citys population is

living in slums. Although the phenomenon of slums in Dhaka is as old as the city itself, about

90% of slums have developed in the last three decades (CUS, 1996). The slum population in

Dhaka City faces extreme poverty due to its low level of earnings and the majority are living

below the poverty line in terms of both calorie intake and cost of basic needs. What is more, the

slum dwellers are mostly involved in low paid jobs in informal sectors of the urban economy. To

be precise there is a predominance of day labouring and rickshaw pulling among this poor group

of city dwellers (Amin, 1991; CUS, 1996; BBS, 1999; Hossain, 2001). The rates of income, wage

and productivity of the urban poor are generally low due to their low paid employment.

Consequently, their level of consumption is also very low despite some differences among poor

households (Hossain, 2004). However, this paper has explored the poverty and vulnerability of

the poor urban communities in terms of their employment and income, expenditure and

consumption and household resources.

Data and Method

The study was conducted in three slums in Dhaka City, Bangladesh which represent different

forms of adaptation by poor households in the city. Five hundred poor households were selected

from these poor urban neighbourhoods proportionately. They were selected randomly from

different strata based on income, consumption and household assets. Data were collected through

a structured questionnaire constructed on various forms of household adaptations such as,

economic activities and income, expenditure and consumption pattern and household resources.

Both descriptive statistics are used for data analysis. The study reveals that the poor urban

communities living in the city slums are mostly excluded from formal sector of the economy and

experience extreme form of poverty and vulnerability in term of their income, consumption and

household assets.

Rapid Urbanisation of Dhaka City

The nature and characteristics of urbanisation has remained similar to the pattern during the

British period despite the growth in the urban population (CUS, 1976). There was no significant

industrialisation in this part during the first half of Pakistani rule. The most phenomenal urban

population growth in Bangladesh occurred during the 1961-74 inter-census period. Over 6 million

people were living in urban areas constituting roughly 8.0% of the total population (BBS, 1987).


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Thus the percentage of increase of the urban population during at 13-year was striking. That

accelerated growth is to a great extent the result of the very recent influx from rural villages. The

growth rate of the urban population was 5.4% during the 1981-1991 (BBS, 1997).The total urban

population increased to 28.6 million by 2001 (BBS, 2003).

The urbanisation process achieved tremendous growth for the needs of the newly independent

countrys capital, Dhaka. The citys population suddenly increased to 2,068,353 in 1974 (BBS,

1977), it began to expand in all directions including the low-lying areas of the east (Chowdhury

and Faruqui, 1991). As very rapid urban growth (along with a fast increase in population and

structural development) started to take place a new structural plan was needed. The population

leapt to 3 million within a decade of the independence of the country and the city covered an area

of about 510 sq. km. by 1981 (Siddiqui et al., 2000). During this period the swamps and wetlands

within the city started to disappear quickly and new areas of residential, administrational,

business and commercial importance began to develop. In addition, slum and squatter settlements

also sprang up in different areas of the city (Siddiqui et al., 2000). Keeping pace with the

magnitude of the urban growth, the new urbanised areas began encroaching on the low-lying

areas within the city limits and even on some adjacent outlying areas (Siddiqui et al., 2000).

Dhaka City has faced its highest rate of physical and population growth during 1981-1991 ,with

the population doubling during that decade and the city expanding from 510 sq. km to 1353 sq.

km. The city now includes the surrounding areas of Gazirpur, Savar, Narayangong, Bandar thanas

and the entire thana of Keraniganj (BBS, 1997). In 1995, a new master plan was prepared for the

further development of Dhaka City and according to Siddiqui et al. (2000) the recent construction

of a bridge over the Buriganga river has encouraged the expansion of Dhaka City in a southerly

direction to the other side of the river. A second bridge which is likely to be completed within the

next five years will further increase this process.

However, the expansion of Dhaka City is constrained by physical barriers such as the low-lying

flood prone areas around the city. Also, valuable agricultural and forested land will have to be

sacrificed if the built-up area is to increase. The population of the city is increasing very rapidly

due mainly to rural-urban migration. The population of the city reached to 10.7 million in 2001

and the population growth of Dhaka has been 56.5% in the last decade, which is very high (BBS,

2003). Understandably, these additional people have created tremendous pressure on the urban

utility services and other amenities of urban life. This has resulted in an adverse effect on the


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urban environment where a large number of people have settled in slums and squatter settlements

where they live below the poverty line (Hossain, 2004).

Poverty and Vulnerability in Dhaka City

Poverty and vulnerability of Dhaka City is clearly revealed through living conditions of millions

of poor people living in slums and squatter settlements in the city. The poor urban communities

are mostly involved in a variety of occupations in urban informal sectors. And due to a lack of

education and employment training they usually do not gain entry into the more competitive

formal sectors of urban employment. About 29% of the respondents are employed in pulling

rickshaws in the city. Most of these rickshaw pullers are illiterate and have no formal

employment training. They mostly received some informal training from their friends and

relatives who also pulled rickshaws in Dhaka City. Another 23% of the respondents are involved

in street peddling and petty trading. These trades have no registration from the government

authorities. And they mostly operate these informal trades with the help of family members. The

poor also work in other occupations like construction (6%), driving and transport (5%), garments

and factory work (5%) and personal services (8%). A small portion (5%) has some level of

education and work as low grade employees in different government and semi-government

organisations. The remaining 12% of the respondents are housewives who are involved in

domestic work.

The urban poor have no permanent employment in the city to manage their lives. They involve

themselves in a series of occupations at different stages of their stay in the city and they often

become unemployed. As it is difficult to survive in the city without any employment, they usually

undertake jobs for short periods of time. Out of total respondents 22% are working in very unsafe

environments where they are at risk of injury or death. Despite such risks they remain in these

jobs as they have no alternative in the city. The urban poor have no access to any type of health

insurance or safety health cover. A significant portion (32%) of the respondents are subject to

harassment at their workplace. The nature of such harassment varies from one occupation to

another occupation. The study shows that of 160 respondents 114 (71.3%) faced verbal

harassment at their employment. Another 39 respondents (22.4%) experienced physical

harassment. The remaining 7 (4.4%) female respondents were sexually harassed by their

employers or bosses while working as maidservants or garments workers. They generally do not


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protest against such harassment because of their vulnerability. They know that they will lose their

job if they protest and cause their families economic hardship.

The urban poor have no certainty of employment and they are frequently underemployed. About

35% of the respondents were underemployed at least once during the survey year. Out of 173

respondents 54.3% were underemployed and were unable to find another job immediately after

leaving a job. A significant portion (33.5%) were unemployed due to some physical illness. As

they have no contractual employment in the city, they become underemployed during periods of

illness. The poor who work in the garment industry or other factories also do not get leave for

illness. If they are absent, they lose their jobs. While they recover from illness they may become

employed depending on the availability of positions in the factories. A small portion (5.8%) was

underemployed due to visiting their ancestral villages. The remaining 6.4% of the respondents

mentioned other reasons for underemployment.

The rates of income, wage and productivity are very low among the urban poor. As they are

involved in self-employed, low paid jobs in informal sectors of work they are unable to earn more

despite their efforts. Some of the households (3.8%) have a very low level of income (up to

1500Tk. per month) and they are unable to support themselves.! Another11.4% and 29 % of

households have earnings from 1501-2500Tk. to 2501-3500Tk. per month. These groups are also

hardcore poor, as they can not buy the required food from their limited incomes. The study shows

that 21.6% and 12.6% of poor households earn between 3501-4500Tk. and 4501-5500Tk.

monthly. The remaining 21.6% of the poor households earn 5501Tk. and above. The average

household income of the poor households is 4424.30Tk. But the intra-household income

differential (std. dev. 2289.46) is very high due to the higher level of income of households with

more members in the urban workforce.

The rate of expenditure in poor households is low because they earn little. Some of the poor

households (3.8%) have a very low level of expenditure (up to 1500Tk. per month). And other

12.2% and 30.4 % of poor households have expenditure from 1501-2500Tk. and 2501-3500Tk.

per month respectively. The study shows that 22.2% and 12.8% of poor households have

expenditure from 3501-4500Tk. and 4501-5500Tk. per month. And the remaining 18.6% of poor

households have expenditure of 5501Tk. and more. The average household expenditure of poor

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!At the period of the fieldwork (June 2003) 1 AU$ was equivalent to approximately 40

Bangladeshi Taka (TK.). But presently (July 2006) 1 AU$ was equivalent to 50 BD Taka due to adevaluation of the Bangladeshi currency.

households is 4148.13Tk. It shows a wide intra-household differential (std. dev. 1907.98) of

expenditure due to a comparatively higher level of expenditure among a considerable number of

households.

The urban poor buy food items like rice, cereals, lentils, potatoes and vegetables at a low cost

from retail shops located in their neighbourhoods. They rarely go to wholesale markets to buy

such small amounts of goods. The average rice intake per person is slightly above 400 grams per

day and there is a wide variation (std. dev 123.02) in rice intake among them. The urban poor

mostly consume rice and few of them eat cereals at breakfast. With rice they mainly eat lentils,

potatoes and vegetables, as these items are relatively cheap. The average intake of lentils,

potatoes and vegetables is 23.3, 20.95 and 129.19 grams per person per day respectively. But

there are wide differences in the rates of consumption of these items, which are expressed by

standard deviations. Most of the urban poor consume fish but they consume only a very small

quantity (average 34.07gram). These poor people usually buy a poor quality of fish from local

fish markets at low prices.

The average intake of expensive items like meat and poultry, milk and milk powder and fruit are

17.9, 25.59 and 7.23 grams per person per day respectively. There are wide deviations in intake

of those expensive items too. The urban poor mostly avoid those expensive items due to their low

incomes. But there is a difference between the hardcore and absolute poor in terms of

consumption of these expensive items. More than 55% of the hardcore poor did not consume any

meat or poultry during the week they were interviewed compared to 40% for the absolute poor.

About 64% of the hardcore poor did not consume any milk or milk powder compared to 55.2%

for the absolute poor. Most of the urban poor (71.8%) are unable to eat any fruit due to their low

level of earning. The percentages of the poor who did not eat any fruit are also higher among the

hardcore poor than for the absolute poor. Overall, the urban poor mainly buy food items like rice,

lentils, potatoes and vegetables and avoid expensive goods.

The urban poor are unable to live on their limited earnings and are often forced to take loans from

various sources. According to the survey more than half of the poor households had loans. Out of

252 poor households 26.6% have loan up to 2000Tk. Another 31.7% and 21.8% of them have a


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loan between 2001-5000Tk. and 5001-1000Tk. respectively. The remaining 19.8% percent have a

loan of 10001Tk. and more. The study shows the difference between the hardcore and absolute

poor in terms of the amount of their household loan. The size of household loans of the absolute

poor is higher than their hardcore counterparts. The average household loan is 8569.16Tk. There

is a wide variation among the poor households (std. dev.11961.16); the minimum household loan

being 200Tk. whereas the maximum household loan is 100000Tk.

The urban poor have very limited access to formal sources of credit due to their unstable and

vulnerable situations. As a result they mostly rely on credit from informal sources. Out of 252

households only 20% get their loans from Non-Government Organisations (NGOs), which are

operating credit programs for the urban poor. About 12% get loans from cooperatives formed by

the urban poor to give support during economic hardships. And another 23% get loans from local

money lenders at a higher rate of interest. But the majority (33%) get loans from their relatives

and friends for which they pay no interest. The remaining 12% of the urban poor get loans from

others sources of credit including banks.

The urban poor have low cost household assets. They generally can not afford costly items in

their households due to their low level of income. The average market value of the assets of poor

households is 7254.24Tk. But there is a wide difference among poor households in terms of the

market value of household assets. Thus the high value of deviation (std. dev. 10,854.37) also

expresses a wide difference among the poor household in terms of their assets. The urban poor

have only the most common assets in their households. In most of their households there are a

few low cost goods which are essential for urban living. Whereas a considerable portion of

households with a higher level of earning can afford some costly items. About 70% households

have low quality beds in their houses (while in the remaining households the poor sleep on the

ground). The value of these beds is generally low. In most of the households (88.8%) there are

low cost cooking utensils with an average value is 1034.8Tk. Only 34.8% percent of the poor

have some low cost furniture in their households. Only 33% of the poor own a television and 28%

own a radio/tape recorder in their households.

Conclusion

Urban transformation of Dhaka City has created severe pressure on existing infrastructures and its

absorbing capacities. A significant portion of poor residents are forced to live in a variety of

slums in the city which are mostly vulnerable to flooding, unhealthy environments and diseases,


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and generally unsuitable for habitation. Although the phenomenon of the slum is as old as the city

itself, nearly all the slums have developed in recent decades as a consequence of rapid mass

urbanisation. Despite the fact that the overall poverty situation in the country has improved over

the years, Dhaka Citys situation has become worse in terms of both upper and lower poverty

lines through the accelerating rate of rural-urban migration of the rural poor.

Poverty in Dhaka City is clearly seen in patterns of income, consumption and household assets.

Poor people are involved in low paid jobs and they have insufficient earnings to support their

livelihoods. Almost half of the poor households of Dhakas slums are hardcore poor - whose

monthly household income is insufficient for their basic needs. Consequently their low level of

earning means the expenditure level is also low. The hardcore poor spend the majority of their

earnings on food. As a result, essential non-food items like health and education are often

neglected. In contrast, the absolute poor can afford to spend part of their earnings on non-food

items. The urban poor usually buy food items at a low cost and generally avoid costly items.

Chronic malnutrition and poor health is the result of deprivation of such necessary food items

over a long period of time. Furthermore, the urban poor lack of access to formal sources of credit

and other resources and are consequently usually forced to seek credit from informal sources. In

fact, a low level of household assets is usually paralleled by a high level of deprivation caused by

poverty including disease, hunger, malnutrition and lack of income.

References

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Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) (1997)Bangladesh Population Census 1991

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Population 1997 (Vol. 3). Dhaka: Ministry of Planning.

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Rapid Mass Urbanization