Bangladesh’s Urban Space Today: Implications for the Growth Agenda
transition to middle-income status, Bangladesh needs to gain a competitive edge in higher-value-added products and services. Key to gaining this edge is the Dhaka metropolitan area, the country’s capital and growth engine.
Notes 1. Unless otherwise stated, Dhaka refers to the Dhaka metropolitan area, including Dhaka City and the peri-urban areas. Dhaka City refers to the Dhaka City Corporation, the core urban center of the Dhaka metropolitan area. Chittagong refers to the Chittagong metropolitan area, including Chittagong City and the peri-urban areas. Chittagong City refers to the Chittagong City Corporation, the core urban center of the Chittagong metropolitan area. See box 4.1 in chapter 4 for an overview of Bangladesh’s urban structure. 2. A population count conducted in 2008 in two wards of Dhaka City (Uttara, a recently established ward, and Dhanmondi, an older and more consolidated ward) indicates that population growth in the core urban center has not slowed since 2001. In Dhanmondi, annual population growth rate over the period 2001–08 exceeded 3.5 percent. Uttara, a new ward with potential for further expansion, grew at an annual rate of more than 12 percent. 3. Population density per square kilometer in Bangladesh increased from 834 in 2001 to 1,015 in 2011. Urban population density was computed based on a census population count of 149 million and an urban population share of 28 percent (Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics 2011a; UN 2011). 4. Population density for Manila and Jakarta are estimates based on City Mayors Foundation (2011). 5. The population of metropolitan Dhaka is 14.9 million and the population of metropolitan Chittagong is 5.1 million, according to the United Nations (2011). 6. Dhaka City (7.3 million) is also a primate city, with more than twice the population of Chittagong City (2.7 million). Population estimates for the cities are based on Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics data, as reported in Brinkhoff (2011). 7. The GDP of the Dhaka metropolitan area for 2008 is estimated at $78 million (purchasing power parity); the GDP of the Chittagong metropolitan area is estimated at $24 million. The projected real annual GDP growth rate for 2008–25 is 6.5 percent for the Dhaka metropolitan area and 6.3 percent for the Chittagong metropolitan area (PricewaterhouseCoopers 2009). 8. Data are based on a randomized but nonrepresentative sample of 30 upazilas (subdistricts) and city corporations (the highest tier of urban local governments). Newly established city corporations are excluded from the analysis. See box 4.1 in chapter 4. 9. Analysis is based on 2001 data. 10. The textile sector is the second-largest source of manufacturing employment (24 percent of formal employment), followed by agro-processing (9 percent). 11. The Herfindahl-Hirschmann Index is the square of the export value shares of all export categories in the market. It gives greater weight to larger export categories, reaching a value of 1.0 when a country exports only one commodity or service. 12. In this study, the Dhaka metropolitan area is defined based on the boundaries of the Statistical Metropolitan Area (SMA) set by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. The SMA’s peri-urban areas include both urban and rural local governments (see box 4.1 Bangladesh • http://dx.doi.org/10.1596/978-0-8213-9859-3
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