By Sheikh Muntaqim Ahmed Al Hasib
Every dry season, Dhaka faces a familiar environmental problem: deteriorating air quality. The city’s pollution levels are particularly severe during the months when rainfall is limited, and fine particulate matter can remain concentrated in the atmosphere.
The scale of the problem is reflected in recent measurements. According to IQAir’s 2025 World Air Quality Report, Bangladesh was the second most polluted country in the world in 2025, with an annual average PM2.5 concentration of 66.1 micrograms per cubic metre. Dhaka recorded an annual average PM2.5 concentration of 68 micrograms per cubic metre and ranked 32nd among cities globally.
The annual ranking does not mean Dhaka remains at the same position every day. Air quality can change significantly from day to day, with pollution levels often becoming more severe during the dry season.
Air pollution in Dhaka comes from several sources. A World Bank study, Breathing Heavy: New Evidence on Air Pollution and Health in Bangladesh, examined pollution exposure among 12,250 people in Dhaka and Sylhet. In Dhaka, the study focused on areas with persistent traffic, major construction and traffic, and brick kilns. It found that the highest concentrations of PM2.5 in urban Bangladesh occurred around major construction and traffic, followed by areas near brick kilns.
The study also found health effects associated with exposure to air pollution. Children aged 0–5 living near major construction sites with traffic were more likely to experience coughs, breathing difficulties and lower respiratory tract infections than children in other study locations.
The wider health burden is significant. A World Bank assessment estimated that ambient air pollution was associated with between 78,145 and 88,229 deaths in Bangladesh in 2019, along with between 1.0 and 1.1 billion days lived with illness. The estimated economic loss was equivalent to 3.9–4.4 percent of the country’s GDP that year.
Bangladesh has introduced measures aimed at addressing the problem. The Department of Environment’s National Air Quality Management Plan 2024–2030 includes measures related to emissions from brick kilns, vehicle emissions and air-quality management.
Transport is also part of the response. In 2025, the World Bank announced support for Bangladesh’s Clean Air Project, which includes stronger vehicle-emission controls, upgraded vehicle inspection centres and the introduction of 400 zero-emission electric buses.
For Dhaka’s residents, the figures represent a problem experienced in everyday life: polluted air along busy roads, dust around construction sites and exposure to emissions from traffic and industrial activity. The evidence shows that improving air quality will require action across several sectors rather than relying on a single solution.
Dhaka’s air pollution is a complex environmental and public-health challenge. Recent data show that Bangladesh remains among the countries with the highest annual average PM2.5 concentrations in the world, while research in Bangladesh has documented the health risks associated with exposure to polluted air. Sustained efforts to reduce emissions and exposure will be important for improving the quality of air in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country.
