Low-income communities in Bangladesh are able to participate in decision-making processes about their housing and receive the necessary technical support to carry out their projects
Bangladesh, with a population of 170 million, including 35 million people living below the poverty line (74% of them women), faces major challenges from the accelerating impacts of climate change and urbanisation.
Faced with internal migrations that exert strong pressure on urban areas, it is urgent to promote solutions that enable low-income communities to exercise their citizenship rights and take an active role in planning and managing their living environment.
Local partners: POCAA and GUC
The Platform of Community Action and Architecture (POCAA) is a network bringing together professionals (architects, engineers, urban planners, sociologists, geographers, etc.) committed to working with low-income communities. The Grambangla Unnayan Committee (GUC) has undertaken a wide range of initiatives aimed at innovating and improving social development, including in the areas of education, housing, and citizenship rights. POCAA and GUC have already been actively working with communities and relevant authorities to promote participatory housing, co-design, and the construction of homes in low-income communities in Dhaka.
To enable the development of these solutions, this project aims to strengthen the capacities of low-income communities in three cities in Bangladesh, while also improving the training of future housing professionals to provide technical support tailored to the needs of these communities. The goal is to promote participatory housing solutions, such as housing cooperatives or other housing models based on principles of democratic governance, active resident participation, and collective mechanisms for access to land and finance.
Activities
Institutional strengthening of POCAA
- Establishment of a paid technical team
- Development of communication tools
- Strengthening the team’s skills
Community organisation and participatory planning
- In-depth research on the housing situation of urban low-income communities
- Profiling of 6 low-income communities in 3 cities
- Co-development of collective action plans in 3 communities
Capacity building
- Training on community development for young professionals
- Capacity building for groups of women, youth, and children in 6 communities
- Field visits at national and regional levels for communities and local partners
Advocacy and exchange of experiences
- Documentation of community-led housing practices (articles, videos, podcasts)
- Organisation of seminars/webinars bringing together communities, professionals, and authorities
- Exchange of experiences and regional-level training
Direct and indirect beneficiaries
Direct beneficiaries: 1,178 people, including around 825 women (70%)
- 32 members of local partners’ teams (POCAA and GUC), including 12 members and 20 volunteers
- 120 young professionals from various backgrounds (architecture, planning, geography, economics, development studies, etc.)
- 1,000 members of 6 urban low-income communities in 3 cities (Dhaka, Jhenaidah, and Sylhet), through various activities (collective studies, community profiling/mapping, collective action workshops, and capacity building processes)
- 26 representatives from academia, local governments, and NGOs
Indirect beneficiaries: more than 1 million people
- 3,600 members of 6 low-income communities; more broadly, over 1.3 million individuals from informal settlements in the three cities will benefit indirectly from the project
- 12 universities will be influenced and made aware of co-creation processes, and will integrate participatory approaches into their practice
