336 Gopalganj families to get climate resilient homes

The Local Government Division and UNDP Bangladesh are building climate resilient homes for 336 urban low-income families in Gopalganj.

Lawmaker Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim inaugurated the project’s construction and then laid the foundation stone on Tuesday, says a press release.

The housing scheme is being implementing at a cost of Tk 30.33 crore under the Livelihoods Improvement of Urban Poor Communities Project (LIUPCP) – a joint project by the LGD, Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) of the UK Government and UNDP Bangladesh.

Houses will be built on a 3.19 acre of land donated by the Gopalganj municipality. The project will offer facilities including agricultural land, playground, courtyard, pond, kitchen market, walkway, rainwater harvesting, fire safety, efficient solar energy
sources and power substation.

Inaugurating the project, Lawmaker Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim said, “The Government has been working tirelessly to ensure improved lives for a cross-section of people. Honourable Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has set a target in Mujib Borsho that not a single person will remain without address or home.

“We are working to ensure an address for everyone so that no one is left behind.”

Gopalganj Paurashava Mayor Kazi Liaquat Ali chaired the inauguration event, which was attended by LGD’s Additional Secretary Dipak Chakraborty, UNDP Bangladesh’s Resident Representative Sudipto Mukerjee, Team Leader and Senior Climate Change Adviser of FCDO in Bangladesh John Warburton.

Ashekur Rahman, assistant resident representative, UNDP Bangladesh; Md Abdul Mannan, former National Project Director, LIUPC project; Md Iqbal Hossain, additional district magistrate, Gopalganj; Mahbub Ali Khan, social worker and founder of Jugoshikha Girls High School also spoke
at the event.

At the event, UNDP’s Sudipto Mukerjee said, “This housing will offer more than just a shelter. It will not only facilitate long-term security, but provide them with a sustainable and improved living standard which considers climatic resilience.”