Only 10.5 per cent of the capital Dhaka's total area is green, said Md Amir Hosain Chowdhury, Chief Conservator of Forests at the Forest Department.

By global standards, he said, a city needs about 20 per cent green cover to stay liveable, but the scope for that much greening in Dhaka is limited, so greening the city's rooftops could bring back at least some greenery.

He was speaking as chair of the closing ceremony of the National Tree Fair 2026 at Ban Bhaban in Agargaon, Dhaka, on Sunday afternoon (9 August). Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Abdul Awal Mintoo spoke as chief guest, and the ministry's acting secretary Dr Fahmida Khanam and Bangladesh Climate Change Trust managing director Kazi Rownakul Islam (Tipu) as special guests.

"Two years ago we carried out a survey in Dhaka. It found that only 10.5 per cent of the total area of the Dhaka North and South city corporations is green. The rest has no greenery," the chief conservator said.

"By world standards, if a city has about 20 per cent green cover, it can be said to be alive and liveable. But our reality is that space for 20 per cent greening in Dhaka is extremely limited," Md Amir Hosain Chowdhury said.

Stressing rooftop greening as an alternative, he said: "If you add up the roofs of all Dhaka's buildings, their area is bigger than the total area of many districts. If we can green those roofs, we can bring some greenery back to Dhaka and create an environment where city dwellers can breathe a little better."

Explaining the need for the fair, he said: "At other times you have to go to Diabari to buy one sapling, to Savar for another and somewhere else for a third. At the tree fair, every kind of sapling is available in one place, so people can look around and buy what they need."

"Many fairs are held in Dhaka. Not every fair is a fair of life, of freshness, of greenery or one that soothes the eyes. The tree fair is the only fair in Dhaka that people can enjoy in peace," he said.

At the ceremony, prizes and certificates were given to second- and third-placed individuals and organisations in the National Tree Planting Award 2025, people recognised for special contributions to wildlife and biodiversity conservation, winners of essay, drawing and tree-identification competitions held for the national tree-planting campaign and Tree Fair 2026, and selected stall owners at the fair.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.