Neoliberal Urbanity and the Right to Housing of the Urban Poor in Dhaka, Bangladesh

In Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh with a population of 18 million, nearly one-third are living under the threat of eviction without resettlement due to lack of tenure security. This occurs despite the Bangladesh government’s ratification of multiple international conventions as well as provisions within the national Constitution with regard to people’s rights. Within this context, drawing on Lefebvre’s theorization of space and using the right to the city (RTC) framework, this article explores the urban poor’s right to housing in the context of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Findings suggest that the local and central government officials categorize slum dwellers as encroachers and criminals, who pose a direct threat to an orderly, clean and green city. Hence, they cannot be allowed to exist in the city. Additionally, the state has shifted the development of land and housing markets to real estate developers, following a neoliberal economic model. Consequently, a few powerful developers control Dhaka’s land and housing markets, only supplying housing for the growing middle class. Access to these houses is far beyond poor people’s reach. Thus, the urban poor’s housing rights are denied both by the state and by the market in Dhaka.