Social Protection in Urban Bangladesh: Addressing the Intensifying Need
Urban poverty and vulnerability in Bangladesh have become increasingly pressing amid rapid urbanisation, with the urban population rising from 23.4 per cent in 2011 to 31.7 per cent in 2022, and projected to surpass the rural population by the late 2030s. Yet the country’s social protection architecture has not evolved in line with this demographic shift, leaving urban low-income populations exposed to rising risks and deprivation. Drawing on HIES 2022 data, this policy brief examines the nature and extent of urban poverty and vulnerability, assesses the coverage and targeting of existing social protection programmes in urban areas, and proposes a set of policy reforms to better align social protection with the realities of an increasingly urban Bangladesh.