Bangladesh took an important step on Monday toward establishing its national Sustainable Building Labelling System, as senior representatives from government, UN agencies, financial institutions, academia, professional bodies and the private sector gathered here for a stakeholder consultation workshop on the implementation of HBRI-DESH (Design for Environment and Sustainable Habitats).
“Through strong collaboration among government, the private sector and development partners, we can establish a credible and transparent system that promotes sustainable, affordable and climate-resilient buildings across the country," said Ferdousi Begum, Additional Secretary and Chairman, National Housing Authority, while speaking as the chief guest.
The workshop was led by the Housing and Building Research Institute (HBRI) under the Ministry of Housing and Public Works (MoHPW), in collaboration with the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), under the project Transforming the Built Environment through Sustainable Materials in Bangladesh, funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
Discussions centred on the implementation of HBRI-DESH and its digital platform, DESHboard, which together will serve as Bangladesh's nationally developed labelling system for sustainable, affordable and climate-resilient buildings, said a media release.
The inaugural session included Ferdousi Begum, Additional Secretary and Chairman of the National Housing Authority; Asifur Rahman Bhuiyan, Chief Architect, Department of Architecture; and Dr. Giasuddin Haider, Director General of HBRI.
A high-level panel, "Advancing Sustainable Buildings in Bangladesh: Policy, Institutional Pathways and Financing for HBRI-DESH Implementation," brought together senior representatives from MoHPW, Rajdhani Unnayan Kartipakkha (RAJUK), the National Board of Revenue (NBR) and Dhaka Power Distribution Company Limited (DPDC), including Md. Abdul Awal, Deputy Secretary, MoHPW, and Md. Ashraful Islam, Chief Town Planner, RAJUK, to discuss the policy, coordination and financing needed to scale the system.
The scale of the challenge underscores the urgency as, according to the UNEP/GlobalABC Global Status Report 2025–2026, buildings and construction account for nearly 37 per cent of global energy-related CO₂ emissions and around half of global material extraction.
Bangladesh, among the world's fastest-urbanising countries, has seen its urban population roughly double in two decades and is projected to become majority-urban by 2037, with housing demand expected to reach 10.5 million units by 2030, according to the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
Participants represented a broad cross-section of stakeholders: government ministries and agencies, Bangladesh Bank and financial institutions, development partners, universities and research institutions, professional bodies such as the Institute of Architects Bangladesh (IAB) and the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB), architectural firms, real estate developers, construction industry representatives, environmental experts and civil society organisations.
HBRI-DESH is more than a technical framework — it is a nationally owned instrument that will help translate Bangladesh's commitment to sustainable urban development into practical action.
The consultation generated recommendations on governance, institutional coordination, financing mechanisms, capacity development and digital systems, which will directly inform HBRI-DESH's implementation guidelines and a phased national rollout, including pilot initiatives and partnerships to encourage wider adoption.
The initiative supports Bangladesh's Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and progress toward Sustainable Development Goals 11, 12 and 13, marking an important milestone toward a low-carbon, resource-efficient and climate-resilient built environment.