A master plan is being prepared to promote urban forestry aiming at making the cities green, resilient and environment friendly. Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) Mayor Atiqul Islam disclosed the plan at an interactive video conference marking World Environment Day. Urban forestry is becoming popular in most developing and developed countries, while Singapore is the best example of urban forestry. ‘Forests in the heart of the city’, as well as the edge of town, is vital not just for aesthetics but for improving residents’ health and reaping economic benefits. Forests and trees make cities healthier for those living there by providing a wide range of goods and services.
The Mayor said tree plantations should take place under a database system following the master plan. A platform has been floated to accelerate the greening process. Experts said to make the city liveable by filling the oxygen deficit, reducing pollution, reducing vehicles and increasing public transports. In 2019, the United Nations unveiled plans to plant urban forests over an area four times the size of Hong Kong, seeking to make Africa and Asia’s rapidly growing cities greener. The UN said the pace of urbanisation on both continents was contributing to climate change and planting trees could improve air quality, cut the risk of floods and heatwaves and halt land degradation.
Singapore has not always been known as the Garden City. In 1963, Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew recognized the importance of greenery as a factor in attracting foreign investors, so he launched a tree-planting campaign. In the 21st century, Singapore has continued its aggressive planting practices, and just as its electronics industry has flourished with new technology, so have its methods for identifying, cataloguing, and inspecting trees. As urbanization creeping, the city authorities and implementing agencies must act co-ordinately to make the cities liveable, environment friendly and green. What Singapore perceived in 1963, we perceive in 2020, however, we must start now and continue the greenery process.
