Bangladesh’s rapid urbanisation is transforming not only the country’s skyline but also the systems that sustain modern urban life. As apartment living increasingly becomes the dominant housing model in Dhaka and other major cities, a structural gap is emerging inside residential buildings: the workforce responsible for maintaining these complexes is no longer aligned with the technical demands of contemporary urban living.
Over the past two decades, thousands of apartment buildings have been constructed to accommodate a growing urban population. Bangladesh’s urban population has expanded significantly since the early 1990s, while demand for construction materials, elevators, pumps, electrical systems, generators, air-conditioning units, and modern utility infrastructure has grown rapidly. Yet despite the transformation in physical infrastructure, the operational systems inside apartment buildings have remained largely unchanged.
A typical apartment complex in Bangladesh still relies on a traditional structure comprising a caretaker, several security guards, and cleaning staff. While these workers perform important operational functions, most are not trained to handle technical maintenance tasks such as plumbing repairs, electrical troubleshooting, pump maintenance, air-conditioning servicing, or emergency response. As a result, residents frequently rely on external technicians even for relatively minor technical problems. This often leads to delays, inconsistent service quality, and rising maintenance expenses for households already facing inflationary pressure.
The issue is therefore not simply a shortage of manpower. It is a mismatch between the skills available within apartment buildings and the services modern urban housing actually requires. This reflects a broader inefficiency in labour utilisation across the urban housing sector. In many apartment buildings, multiple workers are employed permanently, yet essential technical services remain outsourced. In practice, buildings are paying twice – once for in-house staff and again for external maintenance providers. As apartment infrastructure becomes increasingly technology-dependent, this model is becoming economically inefficient.
Internationally, building management systems have evolved differently. In countries such as Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States, apartment maintenance staff are increasingly trained as multi-skilled facility technicians capable of handling a combination of electrical systems, plumbing, HVAC maintenance, preventive inspection, and basic safety management.
Certification programmes for apartment maintenance personnel in these countries typically combine technical competence with emergency response training, equipment handling, and customer service standards. The result is faster problem resolution, lower operational costs, and improved residential safety.
Bangladesh already possesses much of the institutional foundation necessary to support a similar transition. The Bangladesh Technical Education Board and the Bangladesh Skill Development Authority currently oversee technical training programmes in electrical work, refrigeration, plumbing, welding, and construction-related trades. However, these programmes are not yet sufficiently aligned with the operational needs of apartment-based facility management.
A targeted intervention could help bridge this gap. Introducing a short modular certification programme – for example, ‘Apartment Maintenance Technician’ training – through polytechnic institutes or Technical Training Centres could equip workers with practical skills in plumbing, electrical systems, generator and pump maintenance, air-conditioning servicing, carpentry, and fire safety. Even a three-to-six-month practical training programme could significantly improve service delivery inside apartment buildings while creating a new category of semi-skilled urban employment.
The economic implications could be substantial. A single trained maintenance technician could manage a large share of routine operational issues within a residential complex, reducing dependence on costly external service providers. This would improve productivity per worker while lowering recurring maintenance costs for residents. At the same time, the development of a skilled apartment maintenance workforce could help formalise an important segment of Bangladesh’s growing urban service economy, which currently remains fragmented and largely informal.
There is also an important labour migration dimension to consider. Bangladesh sends large numbers of workers abroad every year, many of whom are employed in construction, maintenance, electrical, and mechanical occupations. Increasingly, labour-importing countries in the Middle East and Southeast Asia are demanding certified technical skills rather than low-skilled general labour. Developing certified apartment maintenance technicians domestically could therefore serve a dual purpose: improving urban service delivery at home while enhancing the overseas employability and wage potential of Bangladeshi workers abroad.
This transition may also create opportunities for sections of the domestic workforce currently engaged in low-productivity service roles. With appropriate technical training, many existing apartment caretakers and related workers could gradually transition into more productive semi-skilled technical occupations rather than being displaced from employment.
Safety considerations further strengthen the case for reform. Recent urban fire incidents have exposed the vulnerability of densely populated residential buildings across Bangladesh. Yet in many apartment complexes, on-site personnel lack even basic fire response or emergency evacuation training. In emergencies, valuable time is often lost before professional responders arrive.
In many countries, apartment maintenance personnel are trained to use fire extinguishers, manage evacuation procedures, isolate electrical systems during emergencies, and stabilise situations until professional emergency services arrive. Incorporating basic fire and emergency response training into apartment workforce development could therefore significantly improve urban resilience and public safety.
The broader policy lesson is increasingly clear. Bangladesh’s urban transition cannot be measured solely by the number of apartment buildings being constructed. It must also be measured by the quality of the systems, skills, and institutions supporting everyday urban life.
The current model – where multiple workers are employed but essential technical services remain externally dependent – represents an inefficient use of both labour and financial resources.
A gradual transition towards a skilled, multi-functional apartment maintenance workforce would improve efficiency, strengthen safety standards, reduce household maintenance costs, and create better employment opportunities for young workers in an increasingly urban economy.
As Bangladesh continues its transition towards middle-income urbanisation, such reforms are no longer optional. They are becoming necessary to ensure that urban growth translates not only into physical expansion, but also into productivity, resilience, and long-term sustainability.
The writer is a Maritime, Logistics and Supply Chain Policy Analyst | Adjunct Faculty, Bangladesh Maritime University
